An Obsession From The Heart
by Winchestergirl123
Summary: Imogen O'Dwyer is a bit of a recluse. She's been living in Hemlock Grove for a few months now and has yet to expand her social life. That is until she meets the town's newest member. Finding some unexpected cordiality she befriends him, and along the way also accepts the school's bad boy into her life. Who unbeknownst to her has been keeping a close eye on her. Roman/OC.
1. Chapter 1

_**Disclaimer:** I do not own Hemlock Grove or any of the characters. I only own my OC._

 _ **A/N:** Yet again, inspiration for a new story hit me. I hope you guys enjoy this chapter. This is a more of an intro for my OC from Roman's perspective. The next chapter will be more focused on Imogen! Btw, Imogen's face-claim is Anya Taylor-Joy. _

_**Summary:** Imogen O'Dwyer is a bit of a recluse. She's been living in Hemlock Grove for a few months now, and has yet to expand her social life. That is until she meets the town's newest member. Finding some unexpected cordiality, she befriends him, and along the way also accepts the school's bad boy into her life. Who unbeknownst to her, has been keeping a close eye on her. Roman/OC. _

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_"I have little left in myself - I must have you. The world may laugh - may call me absurd, selfish - but it does not signify. My very soul demands you: it will be satisfied, or it will take deadly vengeance on its frame."_ _― Charlotte Brontë, Jane Eyre_

* * *

 _ **Chapter 1: Imogen O'Dwyer**_

He'd been watching her for months now.

Ever since she had moved to this Godforsaken town.

Hemlock Grove was a relatively boring town for Roman Godfrey. So to have someone move here out of the blue during the summer certainly caused people in town to turn their heads. His included. Although to be honest it was the rumors he heard that made him ever more curious about the new girl.

The same said rumors that were first spread around by another town resident _―_ Christina Wendall. The young girl had said some very tactless things about the new girl. Mostly the rumors revolved around the new girl's grandmother who she now lived with. Saying that her grandmother was a witch and that she was one as well.

She being Imogen O'Dwyer.

That was her name. The name of the girl that had caught his attention. And in his opinion the name Imogen fit her perfectly. It was different...unique. It was a name that Roman had taken into his memory ever since first hearing it for himself. It made her stand out from the riff-raffs that resided in Hemlock Grove. Unfortunately so did the rumors about her and her grandmother, but unlike her name the rumors made her stand out in a more negative way.

Even before Imogen's arrival, Roman knew that her grandmother Agatha was not very well liked by the town members. They perceived her as the crazy old lady who lived in a trailer hidden in the woods. And because of how odd she seemed people had come to the conclusion that she was indeed a witch. Plus the rumors that were first started off by that Wendall girl didn't help. If anything the rumors about Agatha O'Dwyer had spread like wild fire around the town of Hemlock Grove. Making everyone know about the infamous old lady who was labeled as crazy. As time passed the rumors calmed down a bit. But a spark reignited again when innocent and mousy looking Imogen O'Dwyer moved into town a few months ago.

People, along with himself were surprised that old Agatha O'Dwyer had an actual living relative. They all thought she had no family members. She was never one to mention anything family related. So the arrival of her granddaughter was big gossip for the town folks.

However the arrival of Imogen O'Dwyer was not very welcoming. Her presence just made the rumors about Agatha being a witch resurface again. Only this time Imogen was part of it too.

Now Roman himself didn't care about said rumors. If anything they just added more to his intrigue towards her. Except did he believe in them?

Well...

Maybe, why the hell not? Sure, it might have been foolish to think that a person could be a witch, but some part of him...deep down thought it could be true. However, did he actually think that mousy looking Imogen O'Dwyer was one? Once it again, maybe. He knew for sure that there was definitely _something_ about her that made her different from everyone else. He just didn't know what exactly that was...not yet anyways. He wanted to find out for himself, but trying to come up with something proved to be more difficult than he thought.

It didn't exactly help that Imogen was a bit of a recluse. Not that Roman blamed her. Especially with the way the town perceived her. But it was her antisocial behavior that was getting in the way of him trying to get close to her. Whenever he saw her, he noticed how she barely interacted with the other people in town. She was just as shy as his sister Shelley—if not maybe even more _._

Which is something he noticed based on the observations he had done on her. He took several mental notes, such as how she didn't like making eye contact with people, to the way she dressed in layers of clothing—preferably dark colored clothing—how her hair was always let down and slightly unkempt, and to the way she spoke. He also knew from the small amount of time he's overheard her talk that she had a low soft voice.

Now normally the innocent, mousy, and slightly unkempt, looking type of girls never attracted his attention. If anything they were a huge turn off for him. But Imogen's air of mysteriousness was enough for him to look past all this. Allowing him to notice the qualities that actually made him find her attractive. Her hair, although always slightly unkempt, was a nice raven color. She had fair skin that he knew if he got to touch, would be soft underneath his fingers. But it was her eyes that absolutely intrigued him the most. They were dark but when underneath light they were a rich warm brown color.

Like they were right now.

Roman took notice of her eye color, as he was discreetly staring at her from across the room.

They were at the small coffee shop the town had. Imogen came in here by herself from time to time to read or write in her notebook. He knew by now that whenever she came here she would always order the same thing. A caramel mocha latte, with extra whip cream. He on the other hand would just order a regular coffee. Since all he really cared about was watching her from a distance. He wasn't so far away from her though, because he was still able to see the small actions she did. All them just intrigued him.

Now it was moments like these, were Roman wanted more than anything than to just get up and finally introduce himself to her. Except he had a feeling that would just backfire on him. She was just too damn timid...which only meant he had to wait for the right moment to make his move on her. Which sucked because he was never one for waiting.

His thoughts faltered a bit and he straighten up in his seat when he saw her stand up. He took this chance to narrow his gaze on her heavy layered clothed form, trying to see if he could make out her body type—but it was no use. He should have already known by now that doing this was just pointless. The baggy grey sweater she was wearing hid her upper body perfectly well and the dark jeans she was wearing weren't giving him much details on her legs either. Which blew royally for him. It's been a few months now and he had yet to get a good view on what type of body she had underneath all those clothes she always had on.

Roman let out a sigh when he saw her make her way out of the coffee shop—completely unaware of his intent staring on her retreating form. He had to tell himself that he'd see her again—real soon to. The summer break was about to end, and although he was annoyed that he had to go back to school, he couldn't deny the eagerness he felt. The school environment would only allow more opportunities for him to interact with the raven haired girl. Pleased at that realization, he brought the coffee cup he had to his lips. While doing so, he let a smirk grow as the thought of finally intruding into her life left a pleasant hum within him.


	2. Chapter 2

_**Disclaimer:** I do not own Hemlock Grove or any of the characters. I only own my OC._

 _ **A/N:** Okay guys, so I had extra motivation writing this chapter. I saw the new trailer for the movie IT and I gotta say the trailer gave me the damn chills. D: With the few glimpses we got of Bill Skarsgård as Pennywise the clown, I have to say he is scary, but I am excited to see how he plays the character. I mean he's amazing in Hemlock Grove, so I for sure think he's gonna be amazingly terrifying as Pennywise. The remake is also giving me ideas for an OC for when the movie comes out... :D So look forward to that._

 _ ***Edited 5/21/17***_

 _ **P.S.** The reason why this chapter is long, is because I decided to add some chapters together. It just seemed like the right thing to do, and it made the story flow better. Plus, now that I am in a way better mood I realized that I enjoy it better when my chapters are longer. Anyways...enjoy reading this new chapter. ^_^ I also do not own the song and band that is mentioned in this chapter._

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 _"Which is the true nightmare, the horrific dream that you have in your sleep or the dissatisfied reality that awaits you when you awake?"_ _― Justin Alcala_

* * *

 _ **Chapter 2: Bad dreams are just the beginning**_

It started off with a bad dream.

A _really_ bad dream. The worst she's ever had so far. Which was an odd thing for her to think so because Imogen O'Dwyer was used to having bad dreams. Or as she should have instead called them, nightmares. Since that was what they really were. But for her sake she called them bad dreams. As a way to lessen her fear _―but_ deep down she knew there really wasn't a difference on what she preferred to call those haunting images that played in her head.

Ever since that wretched car accident she was in _―_ the one that ended up killing her parents and severally harming her _―_ bad dreams were just a given for her. Except this particular dream she had felt so real and it was horrific.

What made her dream weird was that it was about Brooke Bluebell.

Now Imogen wasn't friends with Brooke but she did have a few summer course classes with her. And whenever she had the sheer unfortunate luck of interacting with the rest of the class, Brooke was one of the few classmates that didn't poke fun at her. Which thoroughly surprised Imogen because she would have figured Brooke to be mean to her because of how the town viewed her. Plus, Brooke was popular and most of the other popular kids weren't very nice to her. But no...Brooke Bluebell was actually a really _nice_ person. In fact she was nice to _everyone_ , including to a recluse like Imogen.

So for her to have a _gruesome_ dream about Brooke...just made her feel awful.

To add to the weirdness, Imogen had bumped into Brooke earlier the day before. It had been a total accident but when this happened, Imogen got a bad feeling in her stomach...and that feeling never went away that day. It was a feeling like as if something bad were about to happen.

She guessed that's what caused her to have that bad dream.

That frightening dream where she saw Brooke running. The brown haired girl was being chased by someone or better yet, _something_. Imogen couldn't be so sure what exactly that something was, but whatever it was, it sure scared Brooke. Her dream then focused on a little play house in the middle of some yard...and then the color red popped up.

 _Only it was blood. Lots and lots of blood and it was everywhere._

And that's when she saw Brooke's mangled up body.

Which was the last thing Imogen saw before she woke up screaming in her bed. Her scream was so loud that it had woken up her grandma from her own sleep, and no doubt the neighbors as well. But even if that were true, they didn't come to complain. Only her grandma came to check up on her. Luckily after doing so, Imogen was able to calm own and she had managed to fall asleep again. This time no bad dreams woke her up. Unfortunately, that didn't mean she was all a ray of sunshine when she woke up this morning.

Imogen was rather glum.

The bad dream aside, the seventeen year old girl was also anxious because it was her first day of school today.

Now although Imogen had taken a few summer classes at Hemlock Grove High, today was technically her first official day as a Senior at the high-school. But Imogen wasn't expecting to be treated kindly today. Since if there was one thing summer school got her ready for it was the ridicule she was probably going to experience today because of her classmates.

Still, Imogen tried her hardest to not let these anxious thoughts get to her while she was getting ready for school. She woke up, showered, brushed her teeth, and changed into one of her many layered dark colored outfits she had. She somewhat dried her hair with her towel before brushing it. Except she didn't really spend so much time on her hair to style it, just enough to get of some of the tangles she had.

After doing all that, Imogen then went into the small kitchen the trailer home where she and her grandma lived had. She wasn't at all surprised to her grandma Agatha already there making breakfast.

Now for Imogen to describe her grandma Agatha she'd have to say she was a very interesting person. Agatha was eccentric that's for sure. More open minded than a regular person would be. Which wasn't a bad thing. It was actually something Imogen liked about her. Since she too was more accepting and open minded towards things as well. Perhaps she wasn't as unorthodox as her grandma but she was accepting nonetheless. So their personalities didn't clash together.

As for how Agatha looked like, she was in her sixties but looked surprisingly good for her age. With only a few wrinkles on her face. The two of them actually shared a lot of similarities. They both had the same dark colored eyes. Agatha also had the same dark colored hair as her, only with the addition with a few silver strands that were barely noticeable unless she was under bright light. She also around the same height as Imogen, standing tall at 5'7.

So the genes on her paternal side of the family were strong.

It's actually sad but before the terrible car accident that took away her parents, Imogen had never really been close to her paternal grandma. The only time she would ever talk to her was through the phone during the holidays and birthdays, or when she'd get to see her in person on rare occasions. When she asked her parents why her grandma Agatha was so distant, they said it was because her grandma enjoyed being alone, but Imogen always found that reason to be not entirely true.

Except even though Imogen thought this reason to be off, she never really looked into it.

That was until the death of her parents. Since moving in with her grandma, Imogen's relationship with her had changed. They were a lot closer now and Imogen had a better understanding on why her grandma was so distant to begin with. Now her grandma never actually said it out loud, but Imogen knew her grandma's distance was because she didn't along well with her mother. She could tell this by the way she would talk about her mother in passive aggressiveness. She could tell there was drama between them. What drama? Well she wasn't so sure. She had yet to ask her grandma about that. But truth be told, deep down she didn't want to ask, because knowing the truth would probably cause her more emotional pain. Which was the last thing she wanted. All she just wanted was to move on from the emotional pain she had from losing her parents.

"Good morning, honey." Her grandma Agatha finally said once she caught sight of her

"Morning." Imogen quietly replied back as she took a seat by the kitchen table.

At the sound of her voice, her grandma turned and threw her a concerned look. "How you feeling?" She softly asked her.

"I'm fine." Imogen immediately answered, forcing a small smile.

"Hmm." Agatha hummed as she set a plate of food down in front of her. "Coffee?" She then asked her.

Imogen somewhat perked up a bit at the mention of coffee. "Yes, please."

Agatha poured coffee into her mug before she sat down across from her. She right away saw how her granddaughter was using her fork to spread around her food on the plate. She hadn't taken a sip of her coffee. She was just somewhat staring at. At the lack of eating and not drinking her coffee the older woman went back into her worried mode. "You sure you don't want to talk about it?" She asked her.

Imogen sighed. "No, I'm sure." After a few seconds of feeling her grandma's stare on her, she steadied her gaze onto her. "It was just a dream, Nana. Really, I'm fine." She said firmly trying to be more convincing. She even used the affectionate nickname she had for her.

Agatha still looked unconvinced. "Is that all it really was?" She questioned earnestly.

Imogen straighten her posture. "Yes, you know about my frequent bad dreams." She told her before finally taking a bite from her breakfast. As she ate, she tried ignoring the distress she felt due to the aftermath her dream left.

That she did know about. Her poor granddaughter. Having to suffer with something as terrible as that. Agatha gave her an understanding look. Her own dark brown eyes were soft with sympathy. "Yes..." She started off saying, her tone of voice turning a bit more serious. "But honey, never had those bad dreams of yours caused you to scream the way you did last night." When she said this, she saw the crestfallen expression on her granddaughter's face. Never liking to see her so down, she threw her a little smile. "Honestly, I'm a little surprised the new neighbors didn't come banging on our door last night." She commented trying to lighten the conversation.

"Yeah...they probably think we're lunatics just like the rest of the town does." Imogen muttered. A few seconds after saying this, she put her fork down. The breakfast plate in front of her totally forgotten. She pulled on one of her sweaters sleeve, fidgeting with her fingers. "I'm sorry." She suddenly said to her grandma. Her dark brown eyes looked straight at her. She right away saw the bemused expression on her face. This made her raise her voice, but it shook due to how emotional she was feeling. "I'm sorry t-that I'm like this. Damaged...b-broken beyond repair. I'm sorry I-I can't get better." She was so close to crying now. Actually was crying. She could literally feel the tears escaping her.

Once Agatha saw her granddaughter's eyes glisten, she immediately acted on the motherly instinct she still had. "Oh, honey." She said gently putting her hand on-top of hers. "There's no need to be sorry." She soothingly said to her. As she did this, she saw a few tears run down her granddaughter's cheeks. "You're _not_ broken. And this is not your fault. Do you hear me? Having bad dreams is not _your_ fault." She said more strongly this time. "It's just something we all have to endure. It's beyond our control. Especially for us O'Dwyers..." She trailed off her voice going faint as she said the last sentence. Gently letting go of her granddaughter's hand.

Imogen managed to stop her crying when she heard this. No longer having her grandma's hand on her own, she wiped at her cheeks using the sleeves of her sweater. "What do you mean by that?" She softly asked her after she finished wiping away her tears.

Agatha who had briefly looked like a deer caught in headlights, fixed her expression back to a neutral one. "Nothing, it's nothing. Just remember Imogen not everyone in this world is going to understand you." She said with a small forced smile. "But no matter what they say, don't let their words get to you. You're an O'Dwyer, and us O'Dwyers have always been the bigger people."

Taking in her grandma's words, Imogen nodded her head. "Yes, grandma."

"You also don't have to keep hiding yourself." Agatha said sending her a knowing soft look.

Imogen right away understood what she was implying at. She tugged at her sleeves self consciously. "I know...I'm just not ready to let others see." She admitted shyly, lowering her gaze towards the ground. She didn't want others seeing the after effects that the car crash caused on her body. Yes, she had survived but that didn't mean she got out without any damages.

Besides the bad dreams as constant reminders of the crash, Imogen also had scars. Permanent scars that were all over her arms, shoulders, and backside.

This was just something private she wanted to keep to herself. That was one of the main reasons why she layered herself with so many clothes. So others wouldn't see, but also because _she_ didn't want to see them herself. The scars were just a reminder that she lost her parents because of that car crash and she never liked remembering that awful accident.

"It's just something to think about." Agatha's voice pulled her away from her thoughts. Imogen lifted up her gaze back toward her. "A person shouldn't have to hide themselves forever." She told her before she got up from where she was siting at. "Now come on. Trying finishing your breakfast. You wouldn't want to be late for your first day of school."

Imogen held in her bitter laugh, because she if let it out she probably would have cried again. She however have her grandma another nod before she saw her walk towards the stove. As soon as she was no longer looking at her, Imogen's face fell.

 _School._

For some reason now the thought of school made a different kind of nervousness begin to grow in her stomach. A type of a feeling that was letting her know something else was about to happen...like change was about to occur...what exactly? Imogen had no clue.

One thing Imogen did know was that she did not want to be late for her first day of school.

So she picked up her fork and began eating the breakfast her grandma had nicely made for her.

* * *

Imogen didn't like taking the bus to school.

There were a lot of reason for this, but there were _two_ main reasons for her dislike that really stood out.

One of the reasons was because the bus was always crowded with loud obnoxious students. Said students that would bother the hell out of her. She knew this personally because she gotten a taste of their hurtful teasing when she used to take the bus during the summer. Granted she had only ridden the bus a few times but it was enough for her to know and experience the students execrable behavior towards her.

So with this in mind, Imogen did not want to deal with their bullying. Meaning if she had the chance to avoid them, she certainly would take it. Which is why she preferred walking or riding her bike to school. It was more peaceful and overall _safe_.

Except this then lead to other reason why she didn't like riding the bus.

This reason _―_ the more _grim_ reason _―_ was because Imogen didn't like being inside moving vehicles. They _freaked_ her out. They have ever since the car crash. So being inside any moving vehicle made her feel extremely anxious. That's why Imogen preferred to walk or to ride her _reliable_ bike instead. Especially when riding her bike because she was the one in control _―_ so she knew she would be okay. At least that's what Imogen would tell herself in order for her disquietude to lessen.

Much like today.

After she had finished eating the breakfast her grandma had made her, Imogen decided to ride her bike to school. On her way there though something rather _unexpected_ happened.

Passing by the neighbor's trailer, she actually got to see one of her neighbors. Now Imogen didn't know much about her neighbors, only a little from what she'd managed to hear about them around town. Except most of what the townspeople said wasn't very nice and it was definitely not worth repeating out-loud. It was plain rude. So she tried to ignore all the hateful rumors, and instead tried focusing on the more truthful facts about them.

For instance Imogen knew for sure that there was two people living in that trailer. A mother and son. Now she didn't know there names, but from the small amount of time she had seen him from afar, the boy looked to be around her age. Not having a good glimpse of him is what made the curiosity she had inside get the better of her. Which is why she had stopped her bike in front of his trailer when she saw him making his way outside.

She knew she should have kept going, but she really wanted to get a better look at him. Except she should have been more discreet, because within a few seconds of gazing at him, the boy made eye contact with her. When this happened Imogen expected him to act out at how weird she was being, but to her surprise he didn't. He instead gave her a wave and what appeared to be a small cordial smile on his face.

Having been thrown off by his friendliness and non-hostility, Imogen's face redden and she began to resume with pedaling her bike _._ Only this time going much faster, wanting to get away because of how embarrassed and bemused she was feeling.

Within a few minutes, Imogen finally made it to the school. She hoped that by now the embarrassment she was feeling would go away. But even after locking her bike by the bike rack, she still felt flustered by what had happened with her neighbor. Knowing a way to relax herself, she took out her iPod that was inside her backpack and put on her earphones. Instantly letting her music monetarily distract the confounded and sheepish thoughts she was having. She then adjusted her backpack over she shoulder, before reluctantly facing the front of the school. She took a deep breath, mentally preparing herself for the hard day she was probably going to have. After doing so, she started to make her way towards the inside.

Before she even stepped through the double doors, she suddenly got the feeling that someone was watching her. Now normally she would ignore this feeling since people in town would stare at her all the time. Only this time it felt different...way different. Goosebumps started to go all over her arms, and she felt her heartbeat pick up. Now despite her inner-self telling her to disregard this feeling _―_ she just couldn't. Once again, curiosity got the better of her today. She slowly let her eyes wander the around school yard. She didn't have to let them wander for long, because almost immediately she caught sight of _him_. Her eyes widening at the sight of his form. Right across the school yard, leaning against on one of the railing, nonchalantly smoking a cigarette.

 _Roman Godfrey._

Now Imogen knew who this boy was. His name _―_ well to be more exact his _family's_ last name was really notorious here in Hemlock Grove. It was practically plastered everywhere around town. Which made sense since the Godfrey's were the richest people here. One would have to be living under a rock or be an utter fool to not know who they were. Roman Godfrey _especially_. His family's notoriety and his own was something that made Imogen rather nervous. So she liked that she never attracted their attention. Or anyone's for that matter. But that all seemed to change today...because here was Roman indiscreetly _staring_ at her. Like _really_ hard core staring at her.

Imogen was extremely bemused by this.

The Godfrey boy had never talked to her before, and she's never even said a single word to him either. So why was he staring at her? For a few seconds she thought that maybe he was staring at someone that was behind her, but a quick look over her shoulder proved this theory to be wrong because there wasn't anyone there. When she looked back towards him, she was surprised, not that she was still staring at her, but because of the small roguish smile he was giving her as he continued to smoke his cigarette. It was like he was silently communicating with her, only she had no idea what he was trying to tell her. No clue at all.

His staring along with his smile towards her, had Imogen feeling all flustered in the inside. This time way more then when her neighbor had first noticed her. Getting a hold of herself, she quickly averted her gaze from him, and let her hair act as a curtain as she walked through the double doors leading into the school. As she walked through the schools hallways, Imogen was careful not to make eye contact with any of the students that were lingering around their lockers.

Even though she wasn't looking at them, she could still tell they were all looking down at her with disdain. The low yet hurtful whispers they were saying, could be heard by her as she passed by them. She tried ignoring everyone's hateful stares and comments by focusing on the song that was currently playing on her iPod. Which happened to be _White Bird by It's A Beautiful Day._

The soothing lyrics helped give her a small amount of strength to keep moving forward. Once she reached her locker, she lifted up her gaze, and put in her combination. She then quickly pulled out a couple of the books that she already had in there, before closing and locking her locker again.

Although her music was helping her nerves, Imogen decided that it would be better if she just went to her first class. Still might have been early, but being an a empty classroom was better than being out in the open hallway with everyone starting at her.

So with ducking her head down, the raven haired teen listened to her music, as she started making her way towards where her first class was at. Once again ignoring the stares and the rude remarks that were being thrown at her.

* * *

Her first class of the day had been Calculus.

Good old fashion Calculus.

Now a lot of people might have complained about having Math first thing in the morning, but there were no complaints coming from Imogen.

Truth be told, she actually liked Math. It was one of her favorite subjects. The other one being English. But she really liked Math in particular because to her it was nothing but simple. Plus solving equations bright and early in the morning really helped fully wake her up.

And to her luck the teasing was practically nonexistent during that class. Which was because of her teacher. Mrs. Benson. Imogen mentally thanked the middle aged woman, because it was her observation skills around the classroom that stopped the students from their impudent behavior towards her.

But just as quick as the class started, it was over and she once again had to endure the bullying that was for sure waiting for her outside the classroom.

As soon as Imogen was in the hallways, she lowered her head down. Letting her dark hair act as a curtain of some sorts, as she made her way towards her locker. Her stomach was knots the whole time and her heart was pacing. She wanted nothing more than to just get the books she needed and then going to her next class.

Finally reaching her locker, she swiftly put in her combination. She then quickly exchanged the books she no longer needed with the books she was going to use next. While doing so she failed to notice the person coming to stand next to her.

"Guess we're locker neighbors too, huh?" Came a unfamiliar boy's voice.

Imogen let out a small surprised gasp as she jumped a little in place. After composing herself she slowly turned towards where the unfamiliar boy's voice came from. Her eyes widen once she saw who exactly was standing next to her. Shock grew on her face as she him putting some of the books he had inside his locker. Him being her neighbor. The same neighbor that had caught her staring at him this morning. And now here he was next to her. His locker was next to hers. Was the universe messing with her? Why was it doing this to her?

The inner questions she was asking herself almost made her miss the way he was looking at her. Almost though because she had managed to get a hold of herself to look at him. Except once she did, bemusement filled her entire being.

Her neighbor was looking at her just like he had when she saw him this morning. There was no ounce of dislike set in his features towards her. Now that she was closer though she also noticed a lot more about him.

Aside from his clothing, which consisted of dark shoes, tattered jeans, a flannel, and a biker jacket over it, she also took his features into account.

His brown wavy hair was near shoulder length, and he looked to be only a few inches taller than her. It was his eyes though that really drew her in. His eyes were a kind blue color. It helped compliment how fair his skin was. But his eyes also held something else in them. Kindness. They practically oozed friendliness. Which was something she hardly ever saw in people. Especially when they looked at her.

This made her shy, yet wary at the same time. However as she continued to gaze at him, she made no move to say anything. The reason being was because nothing came to mind. What could she say anyways?

As this happened, Imogen noticed how his warm expression faltered a little with puzzlement. He furrowed his eyebrows a bit, almost as if he were trying to solve something. After a second or so, his expression turned back into one of friendliness again.

"I'm Peter. He said introducing himself. He then stuck out his hand towards her. "And you are?"

To say she was heavily baffled by this action was an understatement. Imogen blinked as she looked at his hand. Besides her grandma, no one's ever been this friendly to her. Not since moving here. So why was he?

Imogen quickly rationalized that maybe he hadn't fully yet heard all the rumors about her. Or maybe he had, and he thought that since he too was new and that there was rumors about him around town, that maybe they could get along of some sorts. Whatever the reason was, Imogen was just glad she didn't have one more student picking on her. Still despite being relieved at his unexpected kindness towards her, she still had wary feelings.

Imogen continued to look at his outstretched hand, before she finally made a move to shake it. When she did this, she lowered her gaze. To embarrassed to look him in the eye. "Imogen..." She whispered to him before letting go of his hand. She was surprised by how warm it was.

"Imogen." Peter said, repeating her name. This caused her to raise her head to look at him again. Once he caught her gaze, he gave her a friendly smile. "Well it's nice to officially meet you. I saw you this morning and _―"_

Knowing where this was going, Imogen quickly slammed her locker shut and speed walked away before Peter got a chance to finish his sentence. She didn't need to look back in order to see the confused look he must have had on. It was already running around on her mind. She knew it was rude to walk away when person was in the middle of talking to you. Especially when the person was kind like Peter was. But he was about to mention how he saw her staring at him on her way to school. And her shy embarrassed demeanor got the better of her.

So feeling like a fool, Imogen turned into a corner. Although she should have been more observant on where she was going because as soon as she turned she bumped into someone.

That someone felt sturdy. So sturdy that the impact made her fall on her behind. Luckily her backpack didn't fall off her shoulder onto the floor, but sadly the books she was carrying did. Laughter from the students that were in the hallway started to fill the air, but almost immediately they stopped. Imogen did dwell on this though since she was to busy trying to gather up all her books. Just as she was about to grab the last one, a hand beat her to it. She slowly followed the hand until she saw who it belonged to. She felt her cheeks warm up once she saw who it was.

Roman Godfrey.

Embarrassment hit Imogen hard once she realized he was the one she had bumped into.

She felt like an complete idiot and utter klutz now.

However these thoughts came to a halt when she saw Roman offer her his free hand. The one that wasn't holding her book. Her eyes widen at the fact that he was actually offering help to stand up. Was she hallucinating? No...she couldn't be. This was really happening.

Accepting his offer, Imogen took a hold of his hand. While doing so, she tried her best to not show how affected she was by this. Though her red cheeks were a dead give away. Especially with the way he had gently pulled her to stand up again.

Except whatever composure she had towards him went out the window once she looked at him.

Imogen knew that Roman Godfrey was a tall. His height was one of things that stood out about him. But next to him, like she was right now, just made what she guessed was 6'4 or so in height way more noticeable. Especially since she was only 5'7. So he really towered over her. But it wasn't only his height that had captured her attention, but his facial features as well.

Now Imogen wasn't the type of person to just like someone based off of looks alone, but even she had to admit that Roman was insanely handsome. His sharp features, dark blonde hair, full lips, and height were all evidence to prove that. Plus his eyes...now Imogen had never been close enough to look at the color of his eyes, but now that she next to him she could tell they were a murky green color.

And she's always liked the color green.

Imogen mentally shook her head. Now wasn't the time to be thinking such foolish girlish thoughts. Anyways this was Roman Godfrey. That alone should have made her run away from him and go hide. Even if he had been staring at her.

"You okay?"

Hearing Roman's question made Imogen focus more on what was happening. She blushed and lowered her gaze a bit. Imogen was so taken back by his question that she couldn't even utter out a word. So she settled with giving him a nod. She heard him take a step towards her. Startled by how close he was getting, Imogen was about to back up but stopped once she saw how he just got close enough to hand her her book back.

This kind gesture threw Imogen off but she found it in herself to lift her gaze onto his. She kept eye contact with him for a few seconds, basking in the color of his eyes before she took her book back from him. After doing this,Imogen started walking away. She stopped when she was only a few feet away from him and glanced back over her shoulder. She right away saw how he was staring at her and she felt her heart race. Still, Imogen found the courage to say the words she wanted to say to him.

"Thank you."

Imogen didn't stick around long enough to hear his response because she resumed her walking after that. But even as Imogen walked further away from him, she still felt him staring at her.

* * *

 _English class._

Imogen felt relief and a small ounce of excitement go through her now that she was in her English class.

Relief because she was no longer in the school hallway and excitement because she knew the English teacher, Mrs. Pisaro. Now she knew Mrs. Pisaro because she had taken a summer creative writing class with her during the summer. And the time she spent in that class just made Imogen grow fondly towards the teachers.

Plus like Mrs. Benson, Imogen knew that Mrs. Pisaro wouldn't allow any sort of misbehavior nonsense in her class. So the seventeen year old would be spared from her classmates taunts. Therefore it didn't surprise her to see that besides Mrs. Pisaro, she was the only one there. The first of the twenty or so classmates to arrive. As she made her way towards the desks, Imogen gave Mrs. Pisaro a friendly nod. Her English teacher returned a nod with a smile of her own. She decided to sit towards the middle row. Once in her seat, she pulled out her notebook and a pencil from her backpack. All ready for her to take notes that would be on the first days lesson. She knew how detailed Mrs. Pisaro was with her lectures.

A few more minutes passed by before the classroom started to get filled with arriving students. Most of them sat far away from her once they saw where she was sitting at. Imogen tried to pay no attention to this and instead tried her best to mask the hurt in her eyes. Sure she didn't like being close to her classmates _―_ on the account that they picked on her―but they didn't have to make their dislike towards her to be _that_ obvious. It just made her feel more dejected.

However the sound of someone pulling the chair from the desk that was right next to hers faltered the downhearted thoughts she was having. Now curious to know who had disregarded the status quo to sit next to her, Imogen turned her head to look at said person. Her dark eyes widen as they saw who it was.

 _Why God? Just why?_

Imogen wondered dramatically. She had already made a fool of herself by bumping into him in the hallway. Why did she have to continue to suffer? What had she done wrong? She blinked. _Nothing_...she'd done nothing wrong. Roman had been the one who decided to take the desk next to hers. Why though? As she wondered this she slowly let her gaze go up towards his eyes.

Those mesmerizing green eyes of his.

Roman noticed her staring and turned his gaze towards her. When he saw the muddled expression she had on, he simply let his lips curl upwards in enjoyment.

Taking in the way he was looking at her made Imogen blush. She averted her eyes away from him. Doing this though didn't stop the feeling she was getting of being watched by him. It was the same feeling she got this morning when she first saw him and when she bumped into him in the hallway. And as much as she would deny out-loud if someone asked her, inwardly there was no denying to herself that his attention towards her both unnerved and flustered her.

A sudden glimpse of brown wavy hair caught her attention. She lifted her gaze towards the front of the classroom and saw her neighbor. Or should she say, Peter. He was looking around the classroom for a seat to sit in when he caught sight of her. And once again for like the hundredth time today, Imogen was surprised. This time because of the amicable expression he had on. Imogen figured that her little running away episode from when he was talking to would have turned him against her. But alas no...he still had a gleam of friendliness in his blue eyes. He gave her a small smile as he took the last reaming seat available. Which happened to be three desks away from hers.

After this the feeling of being watched by Roman increased. Blushing, Imogen closed her eyes and laid her head on her desk.

 _This was just not her day._

* * *

 _Please stop looking at me._

 _Please stop looking at me._

 _Please...Please...Please..._

Imogen thought to herself as she faced forward in her seat. The raven haired girl might have not looked like it on the outside, but inside she was full on freaking out. All throughout English class she had felt Roman's eyes on her. She didn't have to sneak a glance at him to know that he was full on staring at her. She just instinctively knew. Yes, a part of her (well a large part) was bemused by this, and she wanted to know why. Why the constant staring from him? But asking that question would mean confronting him and she wasn't sure she would even be able to utter out a single world to him if she did that. Plus that would mean _actually_ accepting the fact that his attention was on her. And she didn't want to do that. Not out loud anyways. She hated it when ever any kind of attention was directed on her. Hence the constant chant going through her head. But deep down she knew no matter how many times she said that to herself, his intense like staring wouldn't stop.

Luckily towards the last twenty minutes of class she was finally able to get a handle of herself inwardly. She started ignoring Roman's staring and instead focused on what Mrs. Pisaro was talking to the class about. Apparently from what she was able to gather, Mrs. Pisaro was already assigning a novel for the whole class to read together. She heard the disgruntled groans from a few students, but she herself didn't mind reading a novel. Especially since the novel that was assigned was _Wuthering Heights._ She's read it before, but she wouldn't mind reading it again. Besides she actually liked the novel. It was a classic. Unfortunately some of her classmates didn't hold the same level headed excitement that she had.

Now to her surprise she found herself sneaking a peek at Roman. Why? Blame her curiosity...again. When her dark eyes landed onto him she saw that he wasn't bluntly looking right at her, but she could tell he was still discreetly watching her. Her short sneak peek didn't give her full answers on how he felt about the assigned reading but that could have been because the unreadable expression he had as he skimmed through the novel pages. It was strangely fascinating how Roman's expression didn't give _anything_ away. He was _good_ at hiding his reactions. He was so good that it was kind of scary.

Imogen also took a quick look towards Peter, wanting to see his reaction. Unlike Roman, the brown shaggy haired boy looked passive about the whole thing, and for some reason Imogen liked his reaction. It was nice to see someone else that was her age, actually be acquiescent towards assigned readings.

Mrs. Pisaro's voice once again caught her attention when she started taking roll call. Imogen found it odd that she was taking roll call towards the end of class, but the raven haired teen had come to know by now that Mrs. Pisaro was one of those teachers that things her own way. She remained still in her seat until she Mrs. Pisaro's called out Brooke Bluebell's name. That immediately made Imogen lift her head up, eyes wide open. She twisted around in her seat in order to get a better look around the classroom. She then frowned. _Was she too distracted with Roman's staring that she missed Brooke coming inside the classroom?_ She hoped that she did and that she would now see Brooke safe and sound, sitting in one of the seats. But the popular brown haired girl was nowhere in sight. This made a unsettled feeling set in her stomach. The same feeling she got when she woke up from that horrible nightmare.

Imogen took a deep breath before readjusting herself in her seat. While doing so she caught eyes with Roman. His intense staring made her freeze. Her heart beat picked up pace and she bit the inside of her cheek out of nervousness. It was as if he knew what she was thinking about.

Getting a hold of herself, Imogen moved her eyes from him and faced straight in her seat. She needed to calm down before she made a scene.

 _Brooke's alright. She probably just skipped class._

Imogen thought to herself, as she once again ignored Roman's staring. Only this time he wasn't the only one staring at her. Peter was too, except she was too much in her thoughts that she was oblivious to the muddled expression that was on his face.

* * *

Imogen was glad that the fifteen minute break students got for the day was right after English class. Once the school bell rang, Imogen darted out of English class. This surprised many of her classmates since she was always the last one to leave the classroom. But her usual routine was different right now. She made her way out of the classroom and went towards the front of the school. Now she was never the one to go where large groups of students hung out, but she was on a personal mission right now. She had to know if Brooke was there. Perhaps her assumption of her skipping class was correct, but she still had to see for herself if that was true.

Unfortunately once she was outside, the raven haired girl did not see Brooke anywhere. All she caught sight of was of her classmates throwing odd looks at her. No doubt wondering what the hell she was doing out there with the rest of them. Her presence must have severely thrown them off. Their reactions shouldn't have surprised her since she wasn't exactly a social butterfly. Being out and about would obviously catch their attention. Except that didn't mean she liked being stared at. She was about to make her inside, when she saw Peter. He was far away but not to far away that she couldn't see what he was doing. He was leaning against the wall, gazing out into the groups of students. She noticed how they were looking and pointing at him. Almost exactly the way they would do to her. Unlike her though, he didn't seem bothered by their harsh treatment. He looked like he didn't have a care in the world. How she wished she could be like that...but no, she cared way too much about what others thought of her.

Sighing, she lowered her head. Feeling stupid for overreacting about this whole Brooke thing, she wanted hide away in the library. It was the one place where she felt the safest, aside from the classrooms. She was about to head inside, when a smooth _―_ if not captivating _―_ male voice made her halt.

"Were you looking for someone in particular?"

 _Oh God._

Imogen was more than startled. She knew that voice. Her heartbeat pick up even more pace when she turned to look at him. Roman. He was leaning against the wall that was the most closest to her and he was smoking a cigarette. She was astonished that she hadn't heard him. How long had he been there, watching her? Her face flushed with warmth as he just continued to look at her with those murky green eyes of his. She tried to gain some composure and she opened her mouth, ready to answer him, but all that came out was a single word.

"Uh..." Imogen quickly shook her head, embarrassed. She finally got a hold of herself. "No, I just wanted some fresh air."

Roman nodded his head, seemingly appearing to have taken her answer. He took took a drag from his cigarette before looking her up and down. "You're Imogen." He said stated more than asked.

Imogen was more than baffled that he actually knew her name. But then again their English teacher did take roll call. Still her cheeks grew more warm at that fact that he actually said her name. "Yes..." She whispered, bashfully.

His green eyes lingered on her. "I'm Roman."

"I know who you are." Imogen said and then paused once she realized how fast she responded. After a few seconds passed she cleared her throat. "Your name is everywhere." She said before shaking her head foolishly. "I mean, your last name is."

After she said this she could have sworn she saw his lips curl up in amusement, but whatever she had seen went away when he brought his cigarette back to his lips. There was a longer silence between them, and Imogen felt rather awkward. She had no idea whether to just leave and go back inside, or to stay outside with him. Well to be honest, she knew what she should have done. Her head was telling her to go back inside, before she did something stupid to embarrass herself. But for whatever reason she didn't leave. She just stood there...across from him.

"You want one?" Roman suddenly spoke up.

This caused immediate relief to wash within Imogen. She was glad that there was no more silence between them anymore. However once Imogen processed the question he had asked her, she furrowed her eyebrows. Staring at the cigarette he had in his hand, she wrinkled her nose. "No." Imogen suddenly felt rude for being so straightforward with him. Yes, she disliked cigarettes but she didn't have to sound so judgmental. She rethought her words carefully before speaking up again."Thank you, but no. I don't smoke."

She was expecting him to ridicule her for this, but he didn't. If anything he just looked slightly taken back, if not amused by her response.

"Why not?" Roman asked, his murky green eyes analyzing her carefully.

Imogen was more aware of this. Especially now that he was a lot closer to her. His close proximity just made her stomach do weird flips. She did her best to ignore this feeling. "Well, because it's not good for you." She answered him as if that were obvious. "And I hear every-time you smoke a cigarette it takes away seven to eleven minutes of your life."

Roman gave her a semi-intrigued look. "Really? Seven to eleven minutes." He said before taking another drag from his cigarette. After doing so he gave her thoughtful expression. "Hmm."

Imogen wasn't sure if he was trying to be funny, but his action of taking another drag from his cigarette was clearly done to get some sort of reaction out of her. She was sure of this. If he was expecting to get some sort of vehement response from her, he was about to be disappointed. Instead she kept her face and voice neutral. "Yeah or maybe more."

Roman gave her a roguish look. "Well, aren't you full of knowledge."

His response this time got a reaction out of her. Imogen blushed and averted her eyes from him. "I, uh, like to read and I remember reading about that somewhere."

"Of course you did." Roman said as slowly averted his eyes away from her.

The way he said that _―_ as if he already personally knew that about her _―_ made her look at him again. She narrowed her dark eyes at him, but remained quiet. She wanted to ignore him, but now that he closer, she couldn't. Especially with the way he staring at her. He once again had on a unreadable expression. This only made her feel more on edge. She fumbled with the sleeves of her sweater as she managed to find her voice. "I-I-uh-have to go."

Roman acted unfazed by her need to leave. "Alright. I'll see you in Chemistry then." He nonchalantly said as he brought his cigarette to his lips.

Imogen, who had opened the door to go inside again, heard what he said. She quickly turned towards him again with perplexed look. It only increased when she saw that he was no longer leaning against the wall. _What did he mean by that?_ Bewildered by his comment, she shook her head. Not wanting to stress over by what he said, she disregarded him and ignored the flips in her stomach he caused, and went inside again.

It wasn't until she went into her next class, which happened to be Chemistry, that she understood why Roman had said that. He was in her class, and as she also found out, he was her partner.


	3. Chapter 3

**_Disclaimer:_ **_I do not own Hemlock Grove or any of the characters. I only own my OC._

 _ **A/N:** Sorry for the long wait guys. I hope this chapter makes up for the wait. I felt extra motivated when writing it because I saw the movie Split again. Gah, it's such an amazing movie and Anya Taylor-Jay was great in it. Also thanks for those who have checked out my other stories. You guys are all awesome! Anyways, enjoy this brand new chapter!_

 ** _P.S._ **_Sorry for the delay, I was having one of the many existential crisis that appear in my life randomly. I got my wisdom teeth out as well, and after the procedure I was just emotional and stuff. I feel a little bit better now though and ready to write again._

* * *

 _"There are no wrong turnings. Only paths we had not known we were meant to walk."_ _― Guy Gavriel Kay_

* * *

 _ **Chapter 3: Unexpected** **cordiality**_

Chemistry class had been beyond uncomfortable for Imogen.

Roman just had to be in that class and be her partner, didn't he?

Now it wasn't because Imogen disliked him that she felt this way. She didn't know Roman well enough to make that kind of decision.

Not _yet_ anyway.

But something about the murky green eyed boy made her feel on edge. Extremely on edge. So she of course was wary of Roman, but it didn't help that she found him intriguing as well. Imogen couldn't deny he was attractive. Not that she would ever admit that out-loud. Imogen, however, never did well when being around people she was drawn to. Especially towards people who paid real close attention to her. But as Imogen knows now, people who she would find interesting always flustered and made her act like a complete fool. More so than usual. And based on the encounters she's had with Roman so far today, she'd have to say that she's been nothing but a complete blushing imbecile.

Despite her shyness, the raven haired girl managed by some miracle to get by Roman's staring. And she did this by ignoring him in total. Not daring to spare a glance his way unless when absolutely needing to or even saying a single word to him. Although Imogen had used this technique, she had no idea how she was going to survive the rest of the year with him. Imogen knew they've eventually would need to talk and interact with each other. They were partners, and she couldn't ignore him forever unless she wanted to fail, which she didn't. Failing Chemistry would ruin her G.P.A and that was the last thing she wanted. Imogen needed to pass all her classes with A's or high B's if she wanted to get a scholarship for college. So if that meant she needed to endure Roman's intense staring...she would. Not that she was looking forward to that. Guess she'll have to deal with that one day at a time.

Thankfully Roman wasn't in her last remaining classes, so Imogen did not see him again when passing the halls or even at lunch time. Not a lot happened in her last classes besides lecture and note taking. Now although Roman wasn't in any other class, Imogen did come to find out that his cousin, Letha Godfrey, was in her AP History class. Imogen wasn't close friends with Letha. She wasn't even friends with her at all but the raven haired girl did know a little bit about the Godfrey girl. Imogen had seen her hangout around town with her friends and just by that she was able to figure out that the blonde was a very extroverted person. Just like any normal teenage girl. Letha was popular, just as Brooke. But the thing that stuck with Imogen the most was that Letha was a nice person. Despite being popular, Letha didn't act full of herself. In short Letha was like Brooke. The blonde was one of the few people at school who didn't tease or throw hateful looks her way.

But Letha wasn't the only Godfrey Imogen had class with. Roman's younger sister Shelley was in her Art class right after Spanish. Like with Letha, Imogen knew about Shelley Godfrey. She was pretty sure everyone in Hemlock Grove knew about the youngest Godfrey. It was just hard not to know about her. Imogen remembered the first time she had seen Shelley. It was when she had been registering for summer classes. Walking down the school hallway she was surprised to have seen her. It just seemed unreal. She was tall, almost reaching 7 feet tall. But that wasn't the only reason why Imogen was taken back. And it wasn't because of how she hid her face either. It had to do with the gloomy atmosphere surrounding her that really made the raven haired girl stare. Shelley looked sad...and Imogen right away knew that feeling from experience. In a way they were the same. Both ridiculed by the others in school because they were seen as different...outsiders. They didn't care or wanted to know the person they really were. And Imogen knew for sure that Shelley Godfrey, despite her outward appearance, was a genuine kind person. She had inner beauty. And that kind of beauty was hard to find nowadays.

Even though Imogen was more wary towards Roman, she had no problem saying hello to Shelley when they were in Art class. She noticed how the youngest Godfrey girl was somewhat surprised by her attention, but Imogen was glad that she had responded back with a shy wave and with her saying hello by using her cellphone that had that talking app. Imogen was also relieved when Shelley made no objections when she sat down next to her.

When classes were finally over, Imogen said goodbye to Shelley and was joyed to see her wave goodbye as well. Once out in the hallway, Imogen hurriedly made her way out towards the front of the school. She made sure to lower gaze down, not wanting to catch anyone's gaze. She could have sworn she felt _his_ gaze on her when turning a corner, but Imogen quickly shrugged it off. She needed to focus on getting outside.

Relief might have not shown on her face, but she was definitely feeling it once she was outside. She made it without getting harshly ridiculed. Maybe perhaps today wasn't as bad as she thought it was going to be. Yeah she had that bad feeling about Brooke's absence, but that was her overreacting. It had to be.

While she unlocked her bike, Imogen heard one of the school buses leave the parking lot. With a small frown set upon her face, Imogen watched as it drove off. She was too into her dislike towards the bus that she didn't hear the oncoming footsteps her way.

"Hey, not a fan of the bus either?"

Imogen grip on her bike lessened when she heard his voice. Peter's voice. Her gaze went to where he was standing in front of her. His brown shaggy hair was disheveled as it was earlier when she had seen him.

Imogen wanted to flat out go to her shy ways and run away. But she knew she couldn't do. One, it would be rude. And she had already ran away from him earlier. Two, she couldn't just run, she had her bike with her. The polite thing to do was to responded back to him. Imogen needed to be civil with him and actually talk. She slowly shook her head. "No, uh, not really. It gets crowded."

A surprised mild look appeared on his face making Imogen frown a bit. "What?" She timidly asked.

"Nothing." Peter replied back. "It's just that last time I tried talking to you, you ran off." A kind smile soon replaced his features. "It's nice that you didn't run off this time."

Imogen blushed. Now would be the time to apologize for that awkward and rude scene she had made. "Sorry about that." She sheepishly apologized. "I get shy sometimes."

Peter waved her apology off. "Don't worry about it. I just thought it was my manliness that scared you off."

Some of her shyness towards him fell apart when she heard him say that. Imogen was able to find humor in his comment. A small smile appeared on her face. "No not your manliness, just my awkwardness with interacting with other people."

"It doesn't seem like it's a issue now." Peter simply told her.

"No, I guess not." Imogen replied, adjusting her backpack over her shoulder

Peter's gaze landed onto her bike. "You ride your bike home."

It was more a statement than a question but Imogen answered it as such. "Yeah, as I said before I don't like riding the bus. It gets crowded." That was one way of putting it, but Imogen decided not to bore him with the real reason why she didn't like riding the bus or any other vehicles.

"Well, since I'm new here and you kind of owe me for running off earlier, you think you can walk me home?"

Imogen was at first puzzled. Surely he wasn't that upset about her running off, and even if so why did she owe him anything? Her looking at him with narrowed eyes is what allowed her to see the hidden amicable smile on he had on. Now she understood. He was being friendly with her. Joking around...something a person would do with their friends. Sure, they just met but Imogen was having no objections if he wanted to be friends with her. Even if she was shy and socially awkward.

Imogen cleared her throat, not wanting him to hear how this affected her. "I guess I can spare not riding my bike for one day."

Peter clapped his hands. "Great, lead the way."

Imogen walked ahead pushing her bike as she did so. She didn't fail to notice how some of the students were up in front were looking at them as they walked off together, but at that moment she didn't care. They kept quiet for the most part, but it wasn't the type of quiet were tension grew. It was calming. Once they were half way there though, Imogen decided to speak up.

"So, how you liking Hemlock Grove?"

She wanted to kick herself for asking that question. She should have thought it through, but didn't and she asked the first thing that popped into her mind. Imogen threw a sheepish look Peter's way. "Sorry, stupid question."

"Nah, it's okay." Peter said easing her worry. He sighed and ran a hand over his shaggy brown hair. "It's different. Everyone here is..." He couldn't figure out a way to end that sentence.

Imogen, however, did. "Judgmental." She suggested. Her voice lowered when she spoke.

Peter didn't fail to notice that though. "Yeah..." He said giving her a expression that held understanding. Wanting the conversation to turn light, he went back to his kidding like ways. "People are already saying things about me. All thanks to this girl."

Imogen abruptly stopped walking. She turned to look at Peter. "Christina Wendall." She said that name almost in a whisper, but Peter was quick to catch it.

He faltered in his steps, but nodded his head. "Yeah, her."

Imogen started walking again with Peter following next to her. Ever curious, Imogen glanced his way. "What she say about you?" She asked him.

Peter sighed. "Just that I'm a werewolf."

Imogen frowned. "Why would she think that?"

Peter raised one of his hands. "Because apparently having your index and middle finger as the same length makes you a werewolf."

Imogen was thrown back. That was the reason why Christina thought he was a werewolf? Seemed a bit silly to her, but then again this was the same girl that thought she and her grandma were witches. Wouldn't do much if she actually over analyzed why Christina was that way. It wasn't like she hated the girl. Though if she did it would make sense. Christina was the one who started all this witch nonsense, but hate was something Imogen had never been able to fully feel towards anyone. Not even towards the girl who made rumors about her and her grandma.

"Oh." Imogen replied back. Wanting to be more lighthearted, she played being fake serious. "Well, then she's right. You are a werewolf. Call the press." She was glad to see Peter laugh at her joke. Things then went back to being quiet, but Imogen was feeling less shy. She wanted to tell Peter something personal about herself. That's what people who were becoming friends did, right? "She did the same to me and my grandma." She admitted, becoming earnest. "She told everyone in town were witches."

If there was one thing she knew for sure it was that she wasn't a witch. Neither was her dear old granny, Agatha. Despite what the rumors were about them around town, none were true. Now she herself never had to deal with rumors involving her before. Until she arrived to the small town of Hemlock Grove. Imogen was rather surprised by how hostile most of the townspeople were to her. It was only when her granny told her the reason why, that she finally understood the town's behavior a little more. Did she find their behavior justifiable? _No_ , not at all.

In fact, she thought it was plain rude.

"And are you, a witch?" Peter asked, semi-amused. Though deep down he was curious to know her answer. Something about her just seemed different. Like with that Roman guy. He knew that he was an Upir but apparently he didn't know about it himself. But Imogen? Peter had no idea what she was, but there was a feeling...something telling him she was more than human. Whatever she was witch or not, she didn't seem to know herself.

Imogen gave him a small eye roll. "Do I look like a witch? Actually don't answer that question." She quickly said after rethinking what she said. Her sense of style _―_ if she had any _―_ wouldn't help her in the long run. But she dressed like this for a reason. A reason she didn't want to talk about with Peter. Not yet anyways. She cleared her throat catching his attention. "Everyone in town says my grandma and I are witches. But that's not true. We just like our privacy, and my grandma is a bit quirky." She lowered her eyes and stared at her old worn out shoes. "Yes, I admit I'm socially withdrawn, and that I wear baggy dark colored clothing, my hairs unkempt, and I lack major social skills, but does all of that really make me a witch?" She managed to find courage and gaze at him again. A frown appeared on her face as she continued on with her talking. "Last time I checked wanting to be on your own and having a lack in fashion didn't automatically make you a witch."

Peter's lips quirked at her rambling. It was kind of adorable. He furrowed his eyebrows when he digested what she fully said. "Last time you checked?" He asked her.

"I'm not a long time resident here." Imogen admitted to the brown shaggy haired boy. "I used to live in San Francisco, and everyone there didn't give a crap about whether you were a social butterfly or not. I miss that about the big city. Everyone here judges you for just being the least bit different."

"Why'd you move?"

Imogen became reserved but brushed passed it. "Uh, my parents and I got into a car accident. I survived, but they didn't. So my grandma got guardianship over me."

Peter threw her a sympathetic look. "I'm sorry."

"Thanks, but you don't really have to be. You didn't even know them." Imogen tried her hardest to cover up how sad her voice had gotten.

Peter noticed this and remained sensitive with the topic of conversation. "Still...it sucks."

Wanting to move pass the topic of her parents, Imogen asked another question. "So why'd you move here?"

"My uncle left me and my mom his trailer." Peter simply answered her.

Imogen's eyes widen a bit in realization. "Vince was your uncle?" Of course. She should have realized the old man who used to live there must have been related to them somehow. She knew of his passing, she heard about it. But apparently his burial and all that was kept on the down low. She didn't think much of it other than maybe he just wanted to keep his funeral private with family only.

"Yup." Peter answered faintly.

"I knew Vince. I talked to him a few times." Imogen shyly said. "He was one of the few people that actually liked talking to me and my grandma. He had some very interesting stories." She gave Peter her own look of sympathy. "I'm sorry for his passing."

"Thanks, but you don't have to be." Peter said repeating her words. It wasn't in a mocking way. It was more in a understand kind of way.

Imogen got this and nodded her head.

Peter noticed that they were reaching his place. As they were reaching his destination, he stopped. This caused Imogen to stop as well. He however looked passed her puzzled expression. "How about I walk you home."

Imogen gave a confused smile. "I thought I was the one who was supposed to walk you home."

Peter smiled and shrugged his shoulders. "Change of plans, now I get to walk you home."

"You don't have to." Imogen quietly said.

"I want to." Peter answered back.

Pushing her bike forward, Imogen gave in with her eyes softening. "Okay."

"By the way, next time you see me in the morning when passing by, say hi." Peter amusingly told her. "I won't bite."

Knowing what he was referring too, Imogen blushed. "Oh, God...I'm sorry about that it's just I thought you would think I was staring."

"But you were." Peter easily replied back.

Imogen became more embarrassed. "Yeah, but I didn't want you to think I was a creep."

Peter's lighthearted teasing slightly vanished. "I don't. Just know to say hi tomorrow."

"Tomorrow?" Imogen asked, confused.

"Yeah, when we run into each other. Being either in the morning or later on in school."

Imogen's embarrassment was forgotten. She nodded her head. "Okay. I will."

Peter smiled. "Alright."

They came to a stop when they finally reached the familiar trailer home. Imogen walked forward, pushing her bike. She glanced over her shoulder. "Um, thanks for walking me home. Even though technically I walked you home too."

"Which I'm thankful for." Peter replied back. Voice full of amusement.

"Anyways, I gotta go." Imogen said as she pointed towards the trailer. Once she put her bike against the trailer she turned to face Peter. She suddenly became serious. "It's strangely been nice talking to you."

"Same here." Peter replied nodding his head.

"I'm glad to know I'm not the only freak around here." Imogen said jokingly.

Peter offered her a smile. "Same, us freaks need to stick together."

The sound of the trailer door opened, and out came Agatha. "Imogen?"

Her grandma's voice startled Imogen. "Grandma?" She questioned in surprise. She furrowed her eyebrows. It was then that she saw her grandmother's car parked a little farther away from their trailer. "What are you doing here? I thought you'd be at work?" Usually her grandma worked until the late afternoon at an old collective book shop the town had. She found it odd that she was here already before her.

"Things were going slow today, so I decided to close up a little early." Agatha informed her grandchild. Her attention was then directed to the boy that was in front of her. "Who's this?"

Suddenly not knowing what to do, Imogen stuttered. "Uh, he's, um..." She adjusted her backpack a few times as she tried talking.

"Peter Rumancek." Peter politely introduced himself. He held out his hand towards the older woman. "I live next door with my mom. It's nice to officially meet you."

Agatha nodded her head in realization. "Oh, yes! The neighbors." She happily shook his hand. "It's nice to meet you too, Peter. I had the pleasure of actually meeting your mother earlier, Lynda. She came by the shop before I closed. Such a nice woman she is."

"That she is."

"So, what's going on?" Agatha asked looking between the two teenagers.

Imogen was still trying to find her voice, and was glad when Peter spoke again.

"Nothing, I just wanted to walk Imogen home."

Agatha smiled warmly at him. "Aren't you the gentleman."

Peter shrugged his shoulders nonchalantly. "Only when I need to be." He joked.

"Still it's nice to see Imogen around people her age. She's quite the anti-social butterfly. She must have really taking a liking towards you." Agatha teased.

Imogen's cheeks redden. Finally finding her voice, she spoke. "Grandma." She groaned, clearly embarrassed.

Agatha waved off her embarrassment. "Oh hush you. I'm only kidding. Well...kind of."

"Well, I'm glad she took her time to talk with me." Peter said giving Imogen a friendly smile, one that the raven haired girl returned back. "Anyways, I should get going. It was nice meeting you." He said to Agatha. He gave a nod towards Imogen before he started making his way home.

Once he was out of hearing distance, Agatha turned to look at her granddaughter. "I like him." She said catching her attention. "He seems nice."

Imogen watched the retreating figure of Peter before looking at her grandma. Another genuine smile appeared on her face. "Yeah, he is."


	4. Chapter 4

_**Disclaimer** : I do not own Hemlock Grove or any of the characters. I only own my OC._

 _ **A/N:** I recently got a job from eight in the morning to four in the afternoon and I am just ugh...I am not a people person. Way too stressful. Anyways, that's why I am late on my update. I get home late and by then I am just tired. I apologize for this chapter being so short, and I promise to make the next one longer. I do however think this chapter is interesting. It focuses more on Peter and especially Roman. I'm starting to realize how much I'm enjoying writing from Roman's POV. He's creepy, but I mean come on...he's Roman...LOL. Anyways, I hope this chapter is enough for now._

 ** _P.S._ **_There's supposed to be a new trailer for the movie IT. I think it comes out next week. Ahhh, I'm excited to watch it but can it be September already? My anticipation is beyond the roof._

* * *

 _"All extremes of feeling are allied with madness."_ _― Virginia Woolf_

* * *

 _ **Chapter 4: Always**_

It was now late into the evening. The sun was just about to set and from outside the sounds of crickets began to fill up the air.

Peter and his mom were inside their trailer sitting around the kitchen table. They were enjoying their simple dinner meal. For the most part the dinner conversation between them had been lighthearted and simple, but silence was now making its way. Never really the one for silence, Peter figured this would be the best time to ask how his mom's day had been.

"So how was your day today?" Peter asked wanting to make conversation with his mom. He was already almost done with his meal, but wasn't really up for eating whatever was left. So to pass time he just moved his fork back and forth on his plate.

"Surprisingly well." Lynda answered back to her son after finishing the piece of food she had. "I finally got to talk to one of our neighbors today." That had made Peter look up from his plate and directed his gaze onto her. "Agatha, the older lady. I went in to her book shop. Very interesting stuff in there."

"I talked to both of them." Peter suddenly said to his mom.

Lynda gave him a small surprised look. "Really?"

"Yeah, when I walked Imogen back to her place after school. Her grandmother Agatha seems nice."

"Yes, I got that impression when meeting her today." Lynda replied, agreeing with her son. She became puzzled. "Imogen? That's the girl's name and you walked her home?"

Peter nodded his head. "Yeah."

Lynda smiled at how nice her son was. "Well, that was a kind thing to do." Her voice then turned serious. "So you guys talked? Did the topic of why she screamed in the middle of the night come up?" Lynda decided to ask him. She knew it was a invasive question but she had wanted to know. When Imogen had screamed in the middle of the night it certainly left a surprised impact on her. For such a timid looking girl, she sure had a set of lungs.

"No, I didn't find myself asking her why. I thought that asking her such a personal question would frighten her. She's already shy enough." Peter told his mom as he continued moved around the food on his plate.

Lynda sighed. "She does seem to be on the reserved side of the spectrum."

Peter shrugged his shoulders not at all bothered by that. "I like her." He nonchalantly admitted. Lynda gave him an amused look. Peter rolled his eyes at his mom's assumption. "Not like that."

"It's okay if you do. I wouldn't blame you. Sure she could use a good brushing of the hair but I've managed to catch a glimpse of her and looked passed that. She's pretty." The smile Lynda had then fell a little. "But she wears a lot of clothes. Kind of over does it. It makes me wonder why."

Peter was as curious as to why Imogen wore a lot of clothes too. But he reminded himself that knowing such reason was not his business. They had just officially met. Best to save the personal stuff for much later. Their friendship was just forming. "Maybe she's just prefers to wear layers." He simply offered to his mom.

Lynda hummed. "Still...it's a little odd."

"Yeah, well she's odd." Peter evenly said. "There's nothing wrong with that."

"I know, after all that's what lured you in." Lynda knowingly said catching Peter's full attention away from his dinner. "There's an air of mystery to her. There's no denying she's different."

"She is different." Peter agreed with his mom. "That's obvious. I just don't know if the rumors about her are true. If she's a witch or not. She's not at all like Destiny. So, I can't pin point out what she is." He became earnest. "Unlike that boy I saw at school." He said referring to Roman Godfrey. The boy who had been staring at him every now and then. The same boy who he noticed kept a watchful eye on Imogen all throughout English class. "I know what he is. He's an Upir."

The attention from Imogen was replaced when Lynda heard such news about said Godfrey boy. Her exterior became stern. "An Upir?" She questioned with wariness.

Peter nodded his head. "Yeah, but I don't think he knows it himself." After saying this he saw how worried his mom looked. He tried moving on the conversation onto something less unnerving for her. "He has a sister, she isn't Upir. I don't know what she is...but she is so big she fills up a doorway!" He exclaimed in wonder. The way he talked about Shelley Godfrey wasn't in a disrespectful way but more in fascinated way. When he first saw the near seven foot girl walking down the school hallway, he was blown away by such height. But unlike with her brother, Roman, Shelley didn't make a sense of uneasiness pass through him. He soon noticed how this new topic of conversation wasn't helping his mom relax. He lowered his eyes a bit. "They're the Godfrey's." He informed her. "That family seems fucked up."

"The Godfrey's are my business. Stay away from them." Lynda warned her son. Sometimes Peter was too curious for his own good. It was up to her to make sure her son was safe from any supernatural harm. She should have told him to stay away from that O'Dwyer girl as well, but unlike with that Godfrey boy she didn't sense danger from her. Yes, she wasn't one hundred percent human, but a feeling within her told her she wasn't necessarily a threat. Not like an Upir was.

Peter digested her warning. He gave a lingering look before he nodded his head.

Silence filled the trailer again before it was broken by Peter's question.

"What do you think she is?" Peter earnestly asked without looking at her. He instead was staring at his plate intently.

Lynda knew who he was asking about. She unfortunately did not have an answer for him. Which she wasn't happy about because she hated not knowing things. She let out an uneven sigh and steadied her eyes onto her son who was still more taken with his plate of left over food.

"I have no idea."

* * *

Roman Godfrey was having quite the stimulating day.

Everything had gone as he planned.

After getting a copy of Imogen's class schedule, he managed to persuade the office lady to switch one of his classes to the Chemistry class Imogen was in. Which was not a difficult thing to accomplish thanks to his natural charisma and that unique thing he was able to do with his eyes. So talking up the office lady was no challenge. He could have made it to the point where he had all his classes with her, but he knew that would be too suspicious. English and Chemistry was good enough for him. Especially since he sat right next to her in English and he was her partner for Chemistry. It was perfect.

He had to admit it was fun messing with Imogen. Leaving her all flustered like that.

He first took notice to this when he had "accidentally" bumped into her. And by accidentally he meant purposely running into her. But doing that lame classic move was worth it. He got her to speak to him. Granted she didn't say much, but it was enough for Roman to know how much his presence affected her.

Then it was in English and Chemistry class. Sure he might have been over doing with the staring, but he couldn't help it. He liked seeing her blush under his scrutinizing gaze. A sense of delectation went through him knowing he was causing that reaction out of her.

It was during their first break that left him feeling smug. He found her nervous word blabbing to be strangely adorable. And he wanted to full on laugh when she had made that comment about cigarettes. As if that would get him to stop. Still, her knowing such a random fact was amusing. And he knew that she knew it was random. Which just made it more amusing. But not as amusing as seeing her cheeks turn red from embarrassment from when having his full on attention on her. Her ruffled up state certainly left him feeling pleased from within.

What was an added bonus was that Shelley had told him that Imogen had been nice to her in their Art class. Now Roman was never one to use his sister. She was probably the only person who he truly ever cared about. But if she was forming some type of friendship with Imogen, he would be all for it. It was a win win. Shelley would get a friend, and he would have the chance to get a lot more closer with Imogen. Plus, it made him feel relief that somebody at that shit school was actually being nice to his sister.

But as he now knows, Shelley wasn't the only one Imogen had befriend today. After school word got around that Imogen went walking home with that new kid. The gypsy. Which only intrigued Roman more, but not just with her, but with the boy as well. There were so many questions going through his head, but they were all put to a stop when his mother spoke up.

He, his mother Olivia and his sister Shelley were currently sitting around the dinner table. Roman had been so into his thoughts that he tuned out the conversation his mother had been trying to make with the both of them. That was until she asked a certain question.

"And? Have we got anything more enlightening to report from our first day at school?"

The dark blonde male saw how his mother was solely asking this question to Shelley. The young girl looked like she did not want to answer this question. She lowered her eyes onto her bandaged covered hands avoiding her mother's hard stare.

Roman did not like how his mother was being with her, so he decided to take the spot light. "There's this new kid."

Shelley quickly gave Roman a glance, and it was one that said thank you. Roman in return gave her one of his rare genuine smiles.

Olivia failed to see the exchange between the two siblings. "The O'Dwyer girl?" The older woman dulled out. This wouldn't be the first time her darling son were to bring up that inexcusable girl, Imogen O'Dwyer. Olivia dared to think at times that raven haired mess of a girl held some sort of importance to Roman. She knew he found the girl fascinating, and she would be lying if she said she had never wondered about her and her grandmother, but she in no way wanted Roman to be involved with Imogen. But there was no need to fret about that. Her son would never deprive himself so low...even if he's made some questioning choices with the ladies he's had relationships with in the past. If she could even call them relationships. They were known as flings. He would always just leave and forget about them.

Roman surprised her by shaking his head. "No not her, a boy. He's a gypsy. This girl's been spreading all these crazy rumors about him. She's the same one who started up the rumors about Agatha O'Dwyer and her granddaughter." He saw the annoyance in his mother's eyes but continued talking. "Anyways, I think he's related to that guy, Vince. The one who lived in the trailer by the river. The one that's close to the O'Dwyer's."

Olivia suddenly lashed out and threw her fork onto her plate. Her perfect ageless features were forming an expression of disgust. "Filth." She spat out with hatred. Her hands were balled up into fists. "The both of them are."

Roman didn't have to ask her to know who the other person his mother was talking about. He discreetly stared out the kitchen window that showed the woods. His eyes followed the direction where Imogen's trailer was at. From where he was sitting all he could see was a faint dot of light. But that was enough for him to get motivation. He moved his green eyes forward, not wanting his mother to catch where he had been staring at. He saw Shelley give him a questionable look, but he just gave her another one of his smiles, instantly making her drop her curiousness.

As he continued to eat his dinner, he didn't dwell on his mother's nonsense hatred. Roman for one did not feel the same way. On the contrary, he was fascinated by Peter and Imogen. More so with the raven haired girl. Despite his mother's warnings, his persistence with getting to know the O'Dwyer girl continued. Which was something he was going to follow through with because he always got the things he wanted.

Always.

And Imogen O'Dwyer was no exception.


	5. Chapter 5

_**Disclaimer:** I do not own Hemlock Grove or any of the characters. I only own my OC._

 ** _A/N_** : _Lately **Bill Skarsgård** has been invading my life. Which is not a bad thing LOL. I saw the new **IT** trailer and it was awesome. We finally got to hear Pennywise's voice and it was everything I wanted it to be. Now we only have to wait one more month for the movie to come out. Speaking of movies, I also saw the movie Atomic Blonde and **Bill Skarsgård** was in it. Even though he had a small part, he just made the movie even more awesome. Anyways, here's a new chapter!_

 _ **P.S.** The next chapter will have Roman and Imogen scenes ;P Look forward to that! _

* * *

_"There are many who don't wish to sleep for fear of nightmares. Sadly, there are many who don't wish to wake for the same fear." ― Richelle E. Goodrich_

* * *

 _ **Chapter 5: A nightmare becomes real**_

Imogen's had her fair shares of bad dreams. The nightmares she's had in the past resulting in her waking up in a panic were proof of that. Except the dream she had last night was more weird than nightmarish. She dreamt of jellyfish in the sky and a snake eating itself.

A pretty, bright, jellyfish. And a green scaly snake.

Why?

She had no idea. There was no blood or dead bodies this time, so that was a plus for her. Besides, the last thing Imogen wanted was to have another nightmare involving a classmate of hers dead. The one she had of Brooke's mangled body had been enough. So compared to her other dreams this one had been strangely pleasant _―_ minus the snake eating itself. Yet a tint of melancholic feeling arose in her because of it.

Nevertheless, Imogen woke up a bit more energized today. Sure enough not waking up screaming in the middle of the night was the cause of that. With an unusual spring in her step, Imogen easily got up from bed and went to the bathroom. Once in there she did her usual bathroom routine.

Afterwards it didn't take more than a minute for Imogen pick out to an outfit to wear. Today she decided on a baggy green and black striped sweater, along with worn out dark jeans. As for shoe wear she just wore her old black sneakers. During her whole outfit changing, the only time she looked at her bedroom mirror again was when she needed to brush her hair. She made sure to brush her quickly, not wanting to look at her reflection more than she needed to.

Grabbing her backpack from her bedroom floor, Imogen finally made her way towards the kitchen. She was surprised when she didn't see her grandma there. A plate that had eggs and bacon was the table. So that meant she had to up, right?

"Grandma?" She called out, but was responded with silence. Where was she? Her confusion though was answered once she saw a note on the refrigerator. Furrowing her eyebrows, Imogen picked up the note.

 _Had to go to work early today. Forgot I was getting a delivery today for a bunch of new books. Yikes._

 _Anyways, I left a plate of breakfast for you on the table. Enjoy and have a nice day at school!_

 _Love, Grandma._

Imogen put the note on the kitchen counter. She let out a sigh. Looks like she was eating breakfast alone today. Imogen pulled out one of the chairs next to table and took a seat. She ate away at the meal her grandma had prepared for her, feeling sad that she wasn't there with her. Yet she understood why she wasn't. It was just she disliked being alone. At school she didn't mind it so much, (on the account that whenever she was around others she always got laughed at) but truthfully the teen didn't really like being alone at home.

If she had turned on the TV or even the radio while she had been eating she might have better prepared herself for the distressed day she was about to have. But alas she didn't, and Imogen left her trailer home with out a clue of the disastrous event that had happened in the quiet town of Hemlock Grove.

After she finished breakfast Imogen began making her way to school. She decided on not taking her bike today determined to instead walk in hopes she would once again cross paths with Peter. Besides he had told her to say hi to him when she saw him again. Which is exactly what she did when she ran into him again. Imogen was passing by his trailer when she saw the male teen come out through his front door. He right away saw her and she was glad to see a smile appear on his face.

Imogen returned the smile and waved when he started walking towards her. "Hey."

"Hey yourself." Peter responded kindly as he stood in front of her. "How are you this fine morning?"

Imogen let out a low laugh at his over exaggerated politeness. "Fine, how are you?"

"I'm doing alright, now that you've graced me with your presence." Peter mirthfully said to her.

If it had been anybody else they would have probably mistaken what Peter said to be a flirtatious comment, but not Imogen. The seventeen year old girl was too simpleminded when it came to things like that. Not that Peter was flirting with her. The male teen just had a way of being too overly friendly that sometimes the things he said sounded way more strongly than what they were meant to.

Just as Imogen was about to respond back to him, she felt something soft go through her legs. Startled, Imogen jumped a bit but relaxed when she saw it was just a cat. She now stared at it with adoration. The raven haired girl loved cats.

"That's Casper." Peter informed her as he saw her look at his cat with starry eyes.

Imogen let out a smile as she bent down and petted the tabby cat. "He's cute." Underneath her fingers, she began to feel Casper purr.

Peter observed how affectionate his cat was being with her. "He likes you. He's friendly with everyone but it looks like he's taking a _real_ liking to you."

Imogen shrugged her shoulders. She gave Casper one last gentle head pat before she stood up again. "Most cats do." She dusted her worn out jeans just as Casper ran through her legs one last time. He then scurried off further from them.

"Are you a cat whisper?" Peter asked amused.

Imogen laughed. "No, but like I said most cats tend to like me."

"Hm." Peter hummed pleasantly. He then stretched his arm out towards a different direction. "After you my lady." He joked.

Imogen adjusted her backpack on her shoulder. "You want to cut through the field?" She asked, confused.

Peter nodded his head. "Yeah, it's much faster."

That was true...cutting through the field was much faster. For Imogen though she never liked going through the field cause it freaked her out going by herself...she didn't know why, it just did. Peter was with her, so it shouldn't be that bad. She slowly gave Peter a nod. "Okay."

Peter's eyes gleamed. "Alright, then after you."

Imogen smiled due to his over exaggerated gentleman antics.

When they were about a minute from entering the field, Imogen took out the _Jolly Rancher_ she had in her backpack. The raven haired girl always made sure she had some type of candy with her. She had a major sweet tooth. After a second of admiring the candy, she then stuck in her mouth. A small smile appeared on her face as she relished the watermelon flavor she was now tasting.

"Isn't a little early for candy?" Peter asked amusingly. Watching her eat that piece of candy was quite random...but funny.

Imogen continued eating the candy until it was soft enough to chew. Due to the amount of times she had eaten the candy over the years, getting it to the chewing stage quickly was not a problem. Once the _Jolly Rancher_ was fully gone, Imogen shrugged her shoulders. "It's never too early for candy." She handed the empty candy wrapper to him.

Peter grabbed the wrapper, frowning. "There's nothing in here." Although he was stating the obvious he was still puzzled as to why she had given him the now candy less wrapper.

Imogen nodded her head. "Exactly." When she saw how he still had on a perplexed expression, she further explained her odd behavior. "The candy lost its importance, so the next time you have one you'll cherish it more."

Peter smiled at how bizarre her sentence was. "Quite the poet, aren't you?"

Imogen smiled, bashfully. "Only on Tuesdays." She quipped back. It still surprised her how easy going she was acting around Peter. No matter the surprise though, she wasn't objecting to it. It was nice having someone to talk freely with. Someone who wouldn't point and laugh at her.

Sadly, whatever good moods they were in came crashing down when they finally walked into the grassy field. Imogen's dark eyes widen when she saw a bunch of police men all around the field. There was also yellow duck tape...

"Wow, what's going on?" Imogen warily asked. Her voice was low and full of unknown dread.

Peter looked concerned as well. "I have no idea." He said eyeing the filed with caution. There was police everywhere and the sight of them had him on edge. He had never liked it when the police were involved.

Both teens became even more alert when they suddenly saw a cop coming their way. Unfortunately they were only able to get in a few steps before the cop's rigid voice stopped them from making their leave from the open field.

"Hey, you two. Come here."

Imogen froze automatically, panic consuming her. Peter on the other hand was more casual with his stopping. He was way better at hiding his nerves, thus allowing to calmly respond back to the cop. "Us, sir?" He asked sounding unsure.

"Yes you two." The cop answered him with a dour expression.

"We were just walking through." Peter tried to easily explain to him.

The cop however was persistent. His expression never faltered. "Just come here, please, okay?"

Both teens knew that it was of a demand than a request. Although he didn't want to, and he was sure Imogen didn't want to either, Peter reluctantly agreed. "Okay." He said sounding a little defeated.

"That means you too, girl." The police man said pointing one his fingers at Imogen.

Imogen felt her stomach drop. She however found it within herself to give the cop a nod.

The cop looked glad they didn't put up much resistance. "Good, the sheriff would like to have a word with the both of you." He then gestured to follow him to where Imogen guessed the Sheriff was at.

Before the cop put his finger down, Imogen was able to tell where he was pointing at. It was towards further into the field. Standing there was a middle aged man dressed in a police uniform. Just like the cop. However, as they walked closer into the field, Imogen began to recognize said man. He was _Sheriff_ Tom Sworn. She'd seen him a few times patrolling the town when she was on her rare out and abouts. Imogen didn't know much about Tom Sworn, other than he was the town's Sheriff and that he had twin daughters. Alyssa and Alex Sworn. She knew who they were because the two blondes were one of the many students who often poked fun at her. The two of them also happened to be friends with Christina Wendall...

Imogen herself never talked to Sheriff Sworn out of nervousness. Not that she did anything illegal or bad, it's just being around someone who had extreme high power with the law made Imogen instantly jittery.

Imogen swallowed the lump she had in her throat once they were standing in front of Sheriff Sworn. The urge to run away was strong, but Imogen fought against doing so. It was getting harder to though due to how the Sheriff was looking at him. She didn't like being behind his hard scrutinizing stare. And she had a pretty good feeling neither did Peter.

"You two live around here?" Sheriff Sworn asked finally speaking to them. His voice was gruff and not to mess with.

Peter pointed back and forth from the direction of their trailers to where the high school was at. "Yeah, our home's that way and school's that way, so we were just walking through."

Sheriff Sworn narrowed his eyes on the silent Imogen. He found it odd how she had been eerily quiet. "That true?"

Imogen shrunk under the intense attention the Sheriff was giving her. Gathering up some courage within her, she was able to find her voice. "Y-yes, sir. We live close to each other. We're neighbors and we were just walking to school together." She rushy told him, stuttering a bit.

Sheriff Sworn slowly took her answer. He proceeded with his questioning. "Did you two happen to hear anything last night?"

Imogen shook her head, while Peter gave him a verbal answer.

"No, sir. It was a quiet night."

Sheriff Sworn steadied his gaze on the shaggy brown haired boy. "What's your name?"

"It's Peter, sir. Uh, Rumancek." Peter evenly responded. He didn't like how he was looking at him. The Sheriff's eyes so full of judgement. You'd think he'd be used to such stare by now, but every now and again those stares just got to him.

Imogen's nerves grew when Sheriff Sworn looked at her. "And yours?" He firmly asked her.

The seventeen year old was not surprised that he didn't know her name. His constant questioning though wasn't making her feel better. "It's Imogen, sir. Imogen O'Dwyer." Imogen muttered. She definitely sounded on edge right about now.

"Right." Sheriff Sworn nodded his head in realization. "You're _Agatha's_ granddaughter."

Imogen could right away tell there was some sort of dislike in his tone of voice when he mentioned her grandma's name. She bit the inside of her cheek refusing the urge to act out her hurt feelings. She could handle people disliking her, but her not grandma. She curled her hands into fists and concentrated on not making a scene. She focused on her breathing until she felt more composed again. Thankfully no one had noticed the moment she had. The Sheriff's voice brought her back to what was currently happening.

"Get their statement and get their ID, and then make sure they get to school." Sheriff Sworn told the cop that had brought them over to him.

Imogen saw the cop nod his head. "Okay. Come on." He said motioning the teens to follow him. Once again they reluctantly followed. As they were walking away from the Sheriff, Imogen glanced back to where they had been, She moved her gaze up further and this time she was finally able to see a little of what was behind the yellow tape. What she managed to see made her realize that there was a play house...and it looked exactly like the one that had been in her nightmare. Suddenly her mind went back to Brooke Bluebell, and she thought the worst.

 _Was she? Could she? No!_

Imogen halted those disturbing thought. Brooke Bluebell was fine...this incident had to be because of something else...it had to be. She moved her gaze forward, hoping that no longer looking at that play house would make her feel better. Except it didn't. Once she focused forward again, she faltered back when she noticed they were making their way towards a cop car. She stared at it with wide eyes and a blanched exterior.

Peter took notice that she stopped walking. He stopped his current movement and instead starting walking back to her. "What is it?" He asked her once he was next to her. He wondered what had caused the sudden caution in her eyes.

"I-I-I can't get inside that car." Imogen vehemently stuttered as she shook her head. Her raven colored hair became more messy than it already was. Except she didn't care about that.

A light bulb turned on inside Peter's head.

 _Oh_.

Peter now understood. It wasn't just because she was nervous of the authorities, she was also scared to get into a car. He looked at her with complete understanding, while the cop, who noticed how both of them were no longer walking, grew more impatient with her. As he came to where they were at he rewarded her with a stern expression.

"I don't have time for your teenage rebellion nonsense. Now get in the car."

Imogen was just about to shake her head and stutter out another no, when she felt a solace touch on her shoulder.

"Come on." Peter said gently patting her shoulder a couple of times. "It'll be okay."

Imogen took a deep breath and collected herself. _Peter's right_...she tried optimistically telling herself as a way to push away those negative feelings down...

Sadly, it didn't work much. She still felt extremely distressed, but Imogen knew better than to put up a fight with the cop. So she sucked it up and followed Peter into the cop car.

Through out the whole car ride she felt like throwing up.

* * *

Crying.

It was the none stop, face all red and stuffy nose, type of crying.

Strangely enough the crying didn't start while she had been in the cop car when they were giving their statement. Although she did have the serious case of the stomach twists. Imogen hated being in there...the fear of crashing kept popping up. Some how (and it was probably because Peter was there to offer comfort) she was able to keep it together. It wasn't until she stepped foot on school property that she lost it. Ever since she arrived to school _―_ which had been about an hour or so ago. She skipped her first class, unable to gain composure to attend. How could she? After finding the dreadful news about Brooke...it left her affected.

Her gut feeling had been right...her nightmare had been right...Brooke Bluebell, as she had come to find out during her police escorted ride to school, had died. The beautiful brown haired popular girl, that everyone loved at school had died a gruesome death. The cop wouldn't release any details to her and Peter about how exactly Brooke died, but Imogen already knew...she had seen it...in that awful nightmare of hers. All that blood and Brooke's mangled up body. It was definitely an animal that attacked her. Which was about the only thing the authorities wouldn't deny thanks to the eyewitness who had discovered Brooke's body. The question of what kind of animal could it have been, roamed in Imogen's mind.

Speaking of her mind...

Imogen felt like she was losing hers. She was a complete mess not only on the outside but on the inside as well.

She had a nightmare of Brooke dying...and now she was dead...what the hell did any of that mean? Besides the constant questioning, she also felt guilt. She knew Brooke was going to die, was how somehow able to see it before hand, and yet she did nothing...and now Brooke was dead. She couldn't help but feel as if that was all her fault...maybe she could have done something to prevent it from happening, but what could she have done?

Imogen used one of her sweater's sleeves to wipe her face. There were tears running down like a stream of water down her face. She knew she must have looked terrible. She didn't need a mirror to confirm that. She felt her stomach drop afterwards. The raven haired girl knew she couldn't stay in the girls bathroom forever. She missed her first period, but she couldn't afford to miss the rest of her classes.

Sighing, Imogen dragged her sorry butt out of the stall. She purposely avoided looking at the bathroom mirror. Adjusting her backpack over her shoulder, she slowly and reluctantly stepped out of the bathroom. As Imogen entered the school hallway she was right away thrown back due to how crowded it was. There were students lingering around everywhere. None of them though had their usual bright expressions, nor were they chatting away like crazy. No, everyone looked depressed. Some students were crying their eyes out to like Imogen had been, while others just looked sad and were seeking comfort from their friends.

Imogen's heart clenched and more guilt arose in her.

They were all mourning Brooke.

Two familiar shrilly voices suddenly caught her attention.

"Bet he knows something about it."

"Gypsy creep!"

Those voices belonged to the Sworn twins. Alex and Alyssa. Imogen moved her gaze around and saw how they were standing a few feet away from her. With them was Christina Wendall. The young novelist appeared to be emotionally distant and quiet compared to them. The twins though were glaring at someone. However that someone was not her. Not that she was assuming so, the comments they made weren't the ones they usually said to her. No this time their hatred was directed towards somebody else...Peter.

Said shaggy brown haired boy was all by himself in the corner. Now usually as Imogen had come to notice, naming calling didn't bother Peter. At least to her it seemed like it didn't. Right now though Peter looked to be as if he were shrinking away from the sudden comments made his way. Something else had to be bothering him. Imogen could tell...

If she had been paying attention to her surroundings, Imogen wouldn't have gotten harshly pushed by the Sworn twins. But alas she did...and she once again had to suffer public humiliation.

"Get out of the way, witch bitch!" Both of the Sworn twins said at the same time. Maybe perhaps if she had been in a better mood she would have found some type of humor with them talking at the same time...but that wasn't the case. And right about now Imogen felt like hiding under a rock. She was hurt by the insult, and her eyes began to feel wet again. Before any of the tears fell down her face, she moved away from the blonde twins and Christina Wendall. The young novelist hadn't been glaring at her like the twins and also hadn't verbally hurt her...but the way she looked at her with complete blank expression wasn't at all reassuring. That just made her want to hide even more.

Imogen felt slight relief when the three girls left. However, her momentary relief came to an end when she started to hear and feel the other student's attention on her. She began to feel her stomach hurt.

Once he saw how she was in the clear, Peter made his way towards her. "Are you okay?" He attentively asked her. He right away could tell she had been crying. Imogen's face was slightly red and her eyes were puffy. Her face was also scrunched up right now as if she were having a stomach ache...hell, maybe she was.

The raven haired teen wrapped her arms around her stomach for a few seconds. She took a deep breath wanting to answer Peter, but she couldn't. She was so into her personal thoughts and was too busy paying attention to everyone else around her.

They were all making her emotionally distressed. Suddenly awful paranoid thoughts began to invade her mind.

 _They were laughing at her._

 _Pointing at her._

 _Whispering insults about her to each other._

Imogen couldn't take it anymore. She lost total composure. A low soft sob escaped her as she ran further into the school hallway...away from everyone else. Her raven hair flowing behind her as she ran away.

Peter contemplated going after her but decided at the last second that she needed to be on her own. He gave her retreating form a sad understanding look. If anyone knew how it felt like to be heavily ridiculed by others it was him. He only wished Imogen would get the strength she needed to get passed this.

With everything that was going on both teens failed to notice the murky green eyes that had been watching them...or more specifically that had been watching Imogen.


	6. Chapter 6

_**Disclaimer:** I do not own Hemlock Grove or any of the characters. I only own my OC._

 _ **A/N** : Here's the next chapter! I wrote this while listening to the 1976 Carrie soundtrack. So it kind of inspired me a little bit. Anyways, enjoy!_

 ** _*Warning* There is mentions of menstrual cycle in this chapter. So if that bothers or grosses you out I apologize._ **

* * *

_"I would like to be the air that inhabits you for a moment only. I would like to be that unnoticed and that necessary."_ _― Margaret Atwood_

* * *

 _ **Chapter 6: A strange coincidence**_

About another hour or so later, Imogen was finally able to get somewhat hold of herself. She had come to realize after her emotional outbreak, that the school schedule was not on normal track. The rest of the classes had been cancelled and students were strongly encouraged to speak with the school counselors to discuss their feelings about Brooke Bluebell's passing.

Imogen couldn't handle it. Even if she had managed to sooth herself away from the emotional mess she had become, she couldn't handle that day anymore. Not only were the stares and whispers from the students were getting to her more than usual, but her stomach had been killing her. Not literally of course. Ever since arriving to school she'd been having a monstrous stomach ache of some sorts. So what she had concluded what she needed was to go home and rest.

There hadn't been any issues with the school when she excused herself. All she she needed to say to the office lady was that she wasn't feeling so well and the school had easily let her go. No doubt they assumed her sudden ailing behavior had to do with Brooke's passing. Which in all fairness it kind of it, but it more had to do with not wanting to face the taunting from her classmates, and because the pains from her stomach were becoming worse.

Before she left the school grounds, Imogen wanted to excuse herself from Peter, but the brown shaggy haired boy was nowhere to be seen. Perhaps he too had left? She wouldn't blame him if he did. The raven haired girl however (much to her luck or misfortune, she had no idea which side she leaned on) caught a glimpse of Roman. It was when she was leaving the school. She saw him leaning against the bicycle rails, smoking. Now what made Imogen muddled was how he was. Unlike the other students she had seen today, Roman wasn't hysterically crying or even showing a ounce of sadness. No...he was just his usual cool self.

Despite finding his distant behavior slightly odd, Imogen concluded that maybe the reason for this was because he a natural stoic. Or perhaps he just wasn't close with Brooke Bluebell like all the other students. Except that didn't really make sense to Imogen since Roman was rather popular. So he had to have at least known Brooke by name. Right? Imogen pondered this to herself as she walked passed him. As she did that the raven haired girl became more thankful that she hadn't ridden her bike to school that morning. A type of weird relief went through her when he didn't spot her walking away from school.

Imogen hoped that maybe walking would some how lessen her stomach ache, but it didn't. The pains and the need for some comfort won over, so she decided to stop by her grandmother's bookshop rather than go home. She just needed her grandmother right now.

So when she arrived to the collective book shop, Imogen was immensely relieved that there were no customers. It was just Agatha, who was behind the cashier desk. Once her grandmother spotted her a confused expression appeared on her aging face. "Imogen?" She asked, perplexed. "What are you doing? Why aren't you at school?"

Right she had asked her these question, Imogen broke down. She couldn't emotionally hold herself up any longer. "Oh, grandma!" She cried as she hurriedly ran towards her. Once she was close enough the raven haired girl brought the older woman into a hug. Imogen's stomach ache worsen at her running, but she didn't acknowledge the pain at the moment.

Agatha immediately responded to her granddaughter's hug. "Honey? What's wrong?" She asked in concern. Her granddaughter was shaking in her arms as she rubbed her back as way to calm her down.

"It's Brooke." Imogen sobbed hugging her grandmother more tightly. "She's..." A louder sob escaped her when she couldn't finish her sentence.

 _She' dead...dead...dead..._

"The Bluebell girl?" Agatha released a sympathetic sigh. "I heard about what happened to her. Such a tragedy." She shook her head sadly. "That poor girl. I can't imagine what her family is going through." She gave her one last soothing rub before gently letting her go. She brushed away her granddaughter's messy raven haired locks to get a better look at her. "Is that why you left school? Were you friends with her?" She softly asked her.

Imogen shook her head. "No, we weren't friends, but..." She wiped the tears that were running down her cheeks.

Agatha frowned at seeing her granddaughter so discombobulated."But what honey?"

"I-I saw it." Imogen stuttered out.

"Saw what?" Agatha asked. She was now greatly concerned as to what she had to say.

Imogen tried steadying her voice. "I saw Brooke in my dream and she was dead." She looked beyond distressed as she continued to talk. "And now she's dead for real and I saw her death before it happened."

Agatha remained silent as she took in her granddaughter's words. Her revelation made her speechless. All she could feel right now is feel pity for her. Her poor innocent granddaughter. Why did she have to be cursed with such a burden?

Her grandmother's silence wasn't making Imogen feel any better. She began to cry again. "What's wrong with me?" She cried out.

Instead of giving Imogen an answer, Agatha quickly enveloped her into another comforting embrace. Imogen made no objection and basked in her grandmother's embrace. Agatha poured in all the comfort she could into the hug. God knows her granddaughter needed some solace right now. She wanted to full out tell her the truth, but that was something Imogen needed to discover for herself. All Agatha could do now was lead her in the right direction.

* * *

After the consolation Imogen had received from her grandmother, they decided to go back home early. Once they arrived at the trailer, Imogen finally fessed up to her grandmother about the stomach pains she's been having.

Agatha, then taking the role of a even more over protective grandmother, told her to go to her room, change into comfortable clothes, and rest. While she did so she made her some peppermint tea. Once giving her the tea, Agatha asked Imogen if she had ate something funny to cause her a stomach ache. Imogen denied this leading Agatha to rationalize that perhaps it was stress from today that was the causing her stomach to hurt. She hoped the peppermint tea would lessen the ache for her granddaughter.

The tea somewhat calmed down her pains and after drinking so Imogen had manged to fall asleep. At first she was afraid of sleeping because she thought she would have another nightmare, but she was so drained out of energy she had no trouble knocking out within then first few minutes after she finished her tea.

All had been find and dandy until she abruptly woke up. Imogen had no idea what time it was but looking out her bedroom towards the dark skies indicated that it was already night time. Now in now way would she have done what she was about to do. She didn't go out when it was night. She had no business doing so. For some unknown reason though a unknown feeling deep down within her was telling her to leave her trailer and to go back to where Brooke's murder site was at. She should gone against this feeling, but she didn't. She made no protest and she easily did as the feeling told her to do.

Quietly, making sure her grandmother wouldn't hear her, Imogen got out of bed and she sneaked out of the trailer. The raven haired girl took the same short cut she had taken earlier. The whole time she walked it seemed almost as if she were in a trance. Her daze like demeanor lessened the moment she arrived to the designated location. Her eyes widen in slight shock as she took in her surrounds.

An open soccer field with the same playhouse they had found Brooke Bluebell's body was in front of her again. The urge to scream was strong and the action of doing so was making it's way up her throat. No scream ever came thanks to her hearing a very familiar voice.

" _Imogen_?"

Blinking, Imogen staggered there for a moment. She got a hold of herself and she turned her gaze to the left. Shock filled her eyes as she saw Peter standing there a few feet away from her. How she hadn't seen him before, she has no idea...

Peter on the hand was completely muddled at her appearance. He was here for his own personal reasons, but why was she here? What purpose did she have being here so late at night? "What are you doing here?" He asked as he walked a bit closer to her. Now that he was closer, he saw that she in what looked like her pajamas. Sweat pants and a over sized dark blue hoodie. He took great notice how even her pajamas hid her body fairly well.

Imogen stared at him in bewilderment for a few seconds before she shook her head. It was as if she had just remembered he had asked her a question. "I-I could ask you the same thing." She nervously stuttered out.

Peter continuing eyeing her with bemusement. He was about to ask her again, but his attention drifted towards the night sky. Bright lanterns from Brooke Bluebell's vigil were now invading the sky causing the darkness to lessen down a bit. They instantly reminded him of his dream. It was weird but the lantern sort of looked like _―_

"Jellyfish." Imogen whispered, but Peter was still able to hear what she said. He quickly turned to look at her with urgency.

"What?" He asked her. His voice was more louder than usual. "What did you just say?" Although he had heard her he wanted her to repeat it again. Being it a confirmation of some sorts. If it was then it meant she had the same dream as him and if that were true, how was it possible?

The raven haired girl took notice to how attentive Peter was being. She swallowed the lump in her throat. "I said they look like jellyfish." For some reason she suddenly became overwrought after she said this. Her stomach was in knots and the pain from before invaded her stomach. Only this time the pains were a bit lower. She shifted her feet out of nervousness as she tried to continue talking. "I-I mean, they do, don't they?" She nervously asked him.

Peter was going to ask her more about why she thought so, when another person's voice _―_ one he had heard before at school interrupted him from doing so.

"How did it feel?"

Both teens turned their heads and once they did so, they saw how Roman Godfrey standing not so far away from them. Although Peter was surprised, it was Imogen who showed it more. She was completely baffled as to why he was here. His sudden question threw her off as well. Through her confusion she saw how heedful he was gazing at Peter. Clearly his question had been directed at him, but the Godfrey boy was also sparing her a few glances here and there. This only made Imogen warp her arms around her stomach. She scrunched up her face as she tried to play away the stomach ache.

Peter didn't avert away from the challenging gaze Roman was throwing him. "What did what feel?"

Roman kept his steady gaze on both of them now. His expression was unrelenting. And what he said next had Imogen's eyes bug wide open.

"Killing that girl."

Imogen's heart started to race. How could he have asked that question? And to Peter of all people. Sure Imogen didn't know Peter very well, but she could picture him killing someone. Just what was Roman getting at?

The Godfrey boy's question got to him, but Peter hid his shock very well. He instead gave him a low concern expression. "I didn't kill her. I figured it was you." He easily retorted back to him.

This time it was Roman's turn to be shocked. Imogen was too, but Peter's focus was more on the dark blonde male teen in front of them. "Me? Why would I do it?" Roman questioned, eyebrows slightly furrowed.

Peter shrugged his shoulders. "Why would I? Or Imogen for that matter?"

Roman's gaze lingered on Imogen for a few seconds. He made sure to take _all_ of her in before looking back at Peter. "I didn't say she had anything to do with it." He clarified. He kept his steady gaze on Peter. "People are blaming _you_ because they're saying you're a werewolf."

Imogen was taken back by what he had just said. Not so much of the werewolf gossip, but more so with how he said that he didn't think she had anything to do with Brooke Bluebell's murder. This made her feel a bit better in the inside. _How odd..._

"Do you believe every rumor you hear?" Peter questioned him causing Imogen to focus on the conversation that was happening.

Roman stepped closer towards them. "Then why is that the three of us are here?"

Imogen's was curious to know why that was as well. Just why were the three of them here of all places? She herself had gotten a strange feeling telling her to come back here. But what about them? Did they too have this feeling? She wanted to flat out asks them, but her damn shyness was winning right now.

Peter let out a sigh at his response. "When listening to all those people, you ever hear of a coincidence?"

Roman narrowed his green eyes at him. "Are you sure it wasn't you?"

Peter's stare harden. "You could try to contain your disappointment."

"Then who was it?" Roman insisted.

"Bear? Cougar?" Peter started suggesting nonchalant. "Creative suicide?"

"I doubt the last one to be true." Imogen muttered sharing her thoughts out loud. She suddenly realized this was the first time she spoke since Roman arrived. Her cheeks started to warm up when she saw how she had caught Roman's attention thanks to that little comment she made.

Roman intently stared at her before his eyes towards the small playhouse in the field. "It's weird." He confessed as he now was looking at the two teens. His attention more on Imogen than Peter. "I knew her. I mean, I didn't know her know her, but to see at parties and stuff." There was a thoughtful pause. "She liked my car."

"It's a nice car." Peter said paying him a compliment. Imogen on the other hand was avoiding Roman's gaze. Just like she had been doing in class, only now it was a lot more harder to do so. Especially since her stomach ache kept getting worse the longer he stared.

"I also knew your uncle, Vince." Roman said catching Peter's attention once more. "He did some work for my mom. She denies it, but she's so full of shit." Imogen was startled by the odious way he spoke about his mother. It was obvious though that he didn't like her. "I liked his stories. The girls would get pretty freaked out, but girls, you know?" Roman asked shrugging his shoulders.

"I found his stories to be very interesting. He never held back any details." Imogen blurted out. She cursed her for making herself stand out. This was only gonna to make Roman stare at her more. Which he was, but she had wanted to prove what he said about girls getting freaked to be wrong. She herself never got freaked out by Vince's stories. Then again she was always able to handle a weird story every now and again.

"Glad you thought so." Peter said to Imogen. A nostalgic like expression then appeared on his face. "Yeah, that sounds like Vince."

A earnest expression settled on Roman's face. "What's it like? Living like, you know, you people?"

Imogen had a feeling he was asking both of them this question. She however did not want to be the one answer such question. She took no offensive to it, but she knew others would have.

Peter though took no offense and thankfully he had been the one to answer. "I guess there's always something over the hill I gotta see." He answered him truthfully. Peter then gave him a quizzical expression. "What's the story of your sister?"

As if to make things even more awkward and complicated, police sirens filled the air. Imogen became even more anxious when she saw a police car driving up their way. With a gasp she started to slowly back away.

"Shit!" Peter hissed with worry. He too began to walk away but stopped when Roman spoke up.

"It's cool. It's cool." The Godfrey boy said trying to calm them both down. "Don't run. Don't run."

Peter and Imogen both remained still, but there chariness didn't falter one bit. Her urge to run away returned when saw two cops come out of the car. One was big, more towards the burly side. And the other cop was the same one she and Peter had talked to earlier on in the day. The same cop who had made her ride in his car. She began to move backwards again but stopped when Peter gave her a side glance. It was look that said, _"Remain calm, you're alright."_ And despite her urge to run, she didn't. She took a deep breath, and tried composing herself.

The raven haired girl saw the cops shine their flashlights onto Roman's form.

"It's that Godfrey kid." The skinnier cop announced to his partner.

"You know it's a school night." The burly sized cop said with attitude.

"I'm a night owl." Roman snidely replied.

The skinner cop _―_ same cop who had escorted Imogen and Peter to school wasn't having any of Roman's attitude. "What the hell are you doing here?" He asked as he shined his flashlight closer to his face.

Despite having that bright light on him, Roman remained firm. "Am I disturbing anyone, officer?"

"You mean other than a dead girl's site?" The cop retorted back to him.

The other cop who was there moved his own flashlight behind Roman."So who's that with you, huh?"

Imogen and Peter both lifted there hands to shield themselves from the cop's bright flashlight.

A nasty expression crossed the cop's face when he saw just who else was there. "It's that punk gypsy and that O'Dwyer girl." He gazed back at Roman with narrowed eyes. "Now, what would you three little birdies possibly be hatching out here that we might look upon favorably?"

"We were having a conversation." Roman replied cryptically.

"About what?" The burly sized cop asked.

Roman let out a sharp smile. "The mysteries of mortality."

"Ok, come on, let's go." The slimmer cop said making his way to grab a hold of him.

The cop however never got to grab him. Before he even laid a hand on him, Roman swiftly turned to look at him straight in the eyes. "Look my old lady's is gonna be a pain in the balls." He harshly told him.

The cop blankly started at him before he slowly back away. "You know, on second thought, his old lady's gonna be a pain in the balls." He monotonously repeated.

His partner gave him a look of disbelief. "What?"

"It's true." Roman spared him a glance before looking back at the dazed cop.

The cop once again repeated what he had just said. "It's true." After that he walked back towards the cop car. The remaining cop looked at Roman with trepidation. "Spooky fucker." He muttered before he too got into the car. It didn't take them long to drive away from the field. When Roman turned back to look at Peter and Imogen he right away saw the wide eyed expressions they had on.

"How'd you do that?" Peter asked warily.

That was a question Imogen wanted to know as well. How did Roman do that? All he did was stare at the cop as he spoke to him. Her stomach ached more as she nervously pondered over this.

Roman looked unfazed by their sudden wariness. "Do what?" He simply asked. He frowned when he felt something drip down from his nose.

Imogen blanched even more when she saw he was having a nose bleed. "You're bleeding..." She pointed out, her voice shaking a bit.

Roman lifted his one of his hands and nonchalantly wiped at his nose. He was not at all bothered by the blood. Was he used to it? Not yet, but it wasn't a shock or a bother to him when nose bleeds happened after he had done that trick of his. He actually sort of relished them. He had always found blood to be so fascinating.

It was obvious that the sight of unexpected blood and the scene he had just caused with the cops had bothered both Peter and Imogen. Roman made no objection when he saw them start to hurriedly walk away from him. He continued to wipe at his nose but stopped when he caught Imogen glancing over her shoulder to look at him. When she saw that he had caught onto her staring she quickly looked away and continued walking away from him.

Despite her sudden urge to get away from him, Roman was able to find a small form of amusement in all this.

His lips curled upwards.

Tomorrow surely would be an interesting day.

* * *

Imogen had no idea how she did it, but she had managed to sneak her way back into the trailer without her grandmother taking notice. After that strange run in with both Peter and Roman, Imogen wasn't really able to get a goodnight sleep afterwards. She and Peter had awkwardly parted ways after leaving Roman. Which really wasn't a surprise. How does one part with another after having an odd encounter like the one they had last night?

Anyways, it wasn't until around three or so that she had finally been able to fall asleep. Unfortunately because she slept so damn late she ended up waking super late at around nine o'clock or so. And to make things even more worse her stomach ache was even more intense that morning. The pain was much lower and every time she took a step she wanted to fall to the ground and curl up into a ball. A few tears escaped her as she got ready for the day, but she fought through it. She couldn't afford to miss school. Yesterday had been a freebie, but she couldn't afford to slack off anymore. To lessen the pain she drank another Peppermint tea and took a gulp of Pepto-Bismol that she found hidden in the bathroom cabinet. That seemed to do the trick because her pains lessened a little. Her stomach still hurt but it lessened to the point to were she could walk without wanting to burst out into tears.

When she got to the kitchen she was glad to see that her grandmother had left her another note. Which just meant she went into work early again. Today that didn't bother Imogen, because she in way wanted her grandmother to see how much of wreck she was. She also didn't want to continue worrying her grandmother. So hopefully the stomach ache she was having would go away today.

Although she didn't want to because of crappy she felt, Imogen rode her bike to school. She ignored the pains as she hurriedly raced to the school grounds. She made it within a few minutes and once she parked and locked her bike she quickly ran into the school. She made it to the front office and told the office lady why she had been late. Lucky the older woman had been nice and accepted her excuse. After that Imogen started making her way to her next class. She had already missed Calculus and English, but she made just in time for Chemistry.

When she opened the class door all of the students turned to look at her. Imogen's face quickly turned bright red. Everyone had already been in their seats and it looked like they were just waiting for the teacher to hand out the assignment for the day. Lowering her gaze down, Imogen raced to her seat. She made sure to avoid the look Roman was giving her. She knew she must have looked terrible. She felt terrible. Her hair was a tangled mess, (even more so than usual) and she was wearing the same old dark blue hoodie she wore to sleep because she was in such a hurry to get to school. She did change out her sweat pants and into some jeans, so that was a plus. And at least she had remembered to put on her sneakers as well. It wasn't like she left home with her slippers that would have been even more embarrassing.

Once she reached her seat, Imogen made sure to hide her face with her hair. She didn't want to deal with Roman's staring right now. Not after what happened last night. She should have known though that her hair acting as a curtain wouldn't work as a shield. Not when it came to Roman Godfrey.

"Hey." Roman said as soon as she sat down.

Imogen cleared her throat. "Uh, hi." She said halfheartedly.

The Godfrey boy could clearly see how she was trying to avoid him. She did this often and normally it didn't bother him. He found her bashfulness towards him to be amusing. For some reason he didn't find anything amusing right now. Maybe it had to do with what happened last night or maybe it was because he could tell something was seriously wrong with her. Either way he wasn't to be ignored today. "I thought you weren't here today." He said trying to get her to talk. When he hadn't seen her in English class he felt disappointment. Thoughts of how maybe she'd skip the day went through his mind, and he found that be unusual. She had skipped yesterday, but he didn't think much of it. Anyways, now that she was here within his vision he felt gratification surge through him.

"I am." Imogen whispered. Her voice was way lower now.

Roman took notice to this and pursed his lips at her lack of attention. "You missed English."

Imogen kept her expression neutral as she felt another stomach pain. "Yeah, I know." She muttered.

This was probably the second time he was _actually_ talking to her and this was all he was getting from her side of the conversation? Displeasure now ran through Roman. It looked like he needed to step it up a notch. "Were you late because of last night? Are you still freaked out?"

Imogen found herself looking straight at him. "I am _not_ freaked out." She said with a firm voice that surprised her after she spoke. Where had that strength come from? Truth was that thing Roman did with the cops had freaked her out (still did). Except she did not want Roman to know. She didn't even want to think about last night. Thinking of such event made her stomach ache worsen.

A grin wanted to make its way to Roman's face but he held it back. "Sure." .

Annoyance rose in Imogen and she was ever glad to hear her teacher speak. That gave her the time to calm down.

"Okay, listen up class." Mrs. Yates, their middle aged Chemistry teacher announced. "You're going to be doing a lab. Now the objective of this lab is for you and your partner to determine the mole-to-mole ratios between the underlined reactants and products in the following two double displacement gas forming reactions. Which are sodium bicarbonate and sodium carbonate." She began walking down the isles. "I'll start handing out the lab paper sheets, once you have them you may begin working."

When they got their lab sheets, Imogen right away started to calculate a plan.

"I think the easiest way for us to obtain the mole-to-mole ratios would be by balancing the chemical equations for the reactions of bicarbonate and carbonate." As she said this, Imogen was already writing down the theoretical approach to the Chemistry problem in her notebook.

From beside her, Roman stared at her with intrigue. Her focus on the lab indicated she really knew her Chemistry. As she continued writing in her notebook he used this time to study her more. In all honesty she looked like a nervous wreck today. But even with her wild tangled hair and extremely bad outfit there was something alluring about Imogen. His eyes must have been messing with him because in a way (at least to him anyways) she kind of glowed a little bit. This only indicated that something was definitely different about her today. Other than her terrible choice in clothing...but what could that be?

Sensing that he was doing his staring thing again, Imogen looked up from her and threw him a sheepish look. "What?" She muttered.

Roman shrugged his shoulders acting aloof. "Nothing, it's just that I've never seen anyone so excited about Chemistry before." His lips curled at her bashful state. "You must really like it."

"It's not about whether I like Chemistry or not." Imogen said making his stare on her intensify. "I just want to get a good grade on this lab. I need to pass Chemistry and I'm pretty sure you need too as well."

She had a point there. He did need to pass this class. "Alright." Roman said nodding his head. "Well what should I do then?" He wasn't a total academic buff, but he wasn't a total slacker either.

Imogen was both surprised and slightly impressed that he actually wanted to do his fair share of the lab work. "You can start adding the sodium chloride to the beaker there." She said pointing to said items that were on their table. "Fill this one to the top."

Roman followed such instruction. As he did this he struck up conversation with her again. "So I'm assuming you didn't get a goodnight's rest, huh?"

Imogen huffed as she stopped working on the theoretical approach. She gave him a stern look. "I already told you, I wasn't freaked out. I don't know how you did what you did with the cop, but I am not freaked out." She rambled stubbornly.

Roman put aside the now filled beaker. He gave her an amused expression as he looked at her. "That's not what I asked."

Imogen took a deep breath before averting her eyes way from him.

"At least you didn't scream this time."

Imogen slowly gazed up at him. Her eyes were wide and her face had gone pale. "You heard me scream?"

Roman nodded his head. "Yeah, how couldn't I?" He still remembered her scream from those nights ago. It was loud and haunting. "So what caused it? You had a bad dream?"

Imogen did not want to tell him about the nightmare she had of Brooke Bluebell. Not him...he wouldn't understand, right?

"Something like that." Imogen muttered. She cleared her throat wanting to move things along. "Start filling the other beaker now, would you?"

After she said this, Imogen focused on her notebook. Roman was left staring at her before he did as she asked. Clearly what he had brought up affected her. He made sure to keep tabs on that. He started to fill the other beaker to the top as he did with the other one.

Suddenly Imogen remembered something. It wasn't that big of a deal but due to her stomach pains and her anxiousness towards Roman, she made her announcement more serious than it needed to be."Wait, don't fill that one to the top!" She blurted out.

Roman immediately stopped filling the beaker. He set the beaker down gently, but when he turned his elbow he knocked over the other beaker that was there. "Ah crap, sorry." Roman's apologized. His eyes widen when he saw where the chemical ingredients had landed. "Shee-it, it spilled on you."

It took her a moment to understand what Roman had said. The way he had pronounced shit had Imogen want to crack a smile. She didn't though. Instead she looked down at her dark blue hoodie. "Oh." She didn't look the least bit bothered. "That's okay." She said shrugging her shoulders.

Roman didn't think so though. He shook his head. "No it's not. You should probably take it off."

Imogen wrapped her arms around her stomach. Her cheeks turned red. "No that won't be necessary."

"But it got all over you." Roman retorted. He narrowed his eyes on the stain. "What is this stuff anyways?"

Imogen sighed. "Like I said, it's sodium chloride."

"Well is that bad?" Roman asked warily.

Imogen resisted the urge to smile at how clueless he was towards Chemistry. He really had no idea. "Sodium chloride is just another way to say salt water."

Roman let out a relieved sigh as he ran a hand through his dark blonde hair. "Well fuck, you could have just told me that."

Imogen wasn't at all taken back from his choice of curse word. She had a feeling he was a natural born swearer.

After calming down, Roman's intense gaze landed on her blue hoodie again. He licked his lips. "Still you should probably take your hoodie off. It's all wet."

Once again Imogen refused. "I'd rather not." She shyly responded.

"Why not?" Roman pushed the question. "Just take it off."

"I said no, okay?" Imogen said raising her voice. Why couldn't he just drop that request? Her emotions were all over the place thanks to him.

This was the first time Roman had ever heard Imogen raise her voice. Obviously taking off her hoodie was a huge no no. But the question was why? Just what exactly was she hiding underneath those layers of clothing? He decided not to push her anymore. Not now anyways.

"Fine then." He simply said.

Imogen began to feel bad. She shouldn't have raised her voice at him. Her emotions were heighten right now. Why? She had no idea. Her eyes soften. "I'm sorry. I just don't like people seeing me without my clothes." She started to blush due to how ridiculous she had just sounded. "I didn't mean it like that. I-I just have my own sense of comfort, okay?"

Roman nodded his head. "Okay." He repeated appeasing her for now.

Imogen let out a sigh as she got up from her seat. "I'll be right back. I'll see if I can go dry this off in the bathroom." The raven haired girl started making her way towards where the bathroom pass was at and as she did this Roman shamelessly stared at her behind. This was something he always tended to do, only this time he noticed something. There was a huge red stain on her bottom of her jeans. A sense of elation grew within him. A red stain on girls pants only meant one thing. Imogen was on her _―_

"Holy shit! Imogen's on her rag!"

A rowdy boy in their class announced to everyone. Right away Roman saw how Imogen's face became one of shock and embarrassment. Judging by her expression alone it was evident that this was her first period. It had to have been, a girl couldn't look that shell-shocked about her menstrual cycle unless she'd hadn't experienced it for herself.

No, this was Imogen's first period, and she had it during Chemistry class in front of all of them. Some of the students were laughing, while others were making disgusted remarks. Mrs. Yates tried getting control of the situation, but couldn't. Before she was able to soothe Imogen, the raven haired girl darted out of the class, flat out embarrassed.

Even after she left the students kept with their taunts.

Roman on the other hand wasn't laughing or feeling disgust like the rest of his classmates. No, the Godfrey boy felt something entirely different. He felt a _lust_ of some sorts towards the O'Dwyer girl. And it was a feeling he most graciously welcomed. His eyes gleamed as they followed the path of Imogen's retreat.


	7. Chapter 7

_**Disclaimer:** I do not own Hemlock Grove or any of the characters. I only own my OC._

 **A/N:** _Hey guys! I'm happy more people are starting to read this story! Thanks to those who had came over from my other story, Floating On Air. Even though that's the story I'm focusing more at the moment, my other stories are not be forgotten. Especially this one.(: So, enjoy!_

 ** _*Warning* Descriptive thoughts of sexual acts are read in this chapter. They are all from Roman's POV, which really shouldn't be a surprise._ **

**_P.S._ **_I also don't own any of the bands/artists mentioned in this chapter._

* * *

 _"Help others without any reason and give without the expectation of receiving anything in return."_ _― Roy T. Bennett, The Light in the Heart_

* * *

 _ **Chapter 7: A moment of kindness**_

Imogen wanted to be swallowed into the ground.

Into a black hole of nothingness.

Anything really to stop her suffering would have satisfied Imogen at this point.

She was one hundred percent embarrassed.

No, scratch that...

The dark haired girl was one hundred percent _mortified_.

After running away from her Chemistry class in sheer agony, the O'Dwyer girl went to the farthest bathroom in the school. The dark haired girl was now (again) hiding inside one of the bathroom stalls. She knew she should have gone to the school nurse instead, but all she wanted at the moment was to hide and be alone.

The laughter from her classmates echoed in her head.

Her eyes teared up again at the thought of them.

Imogen didn't want to deal with any of their taunts.

She grimaced when she felt another pain come from her stomach. " _Ah_." Imogen groaned, wrapping her arms her midsection. Now that she knew the reason behind her stomach pain, she sure felt stupid.

Of course all those symptoms related back to having her menstrual cycle. How could she have been so dense?

In her defense, not even he grandmother had guessed that. Then again, before today Imogen never had her period. She knew about it of course. Her mother had been the one to explain of all the womanly changes she would have to endure when she got older. However, after the car accident and the passing of both her mother and father, Imogen never gave much thought of the exterior developments she had to go through just because she was a female. The O'Dwyer girl of course did notice the slow changes of her body. She was a late bloomer when it came it physical traits, but that didn't mean she was ignorant to see the changes of her body. She just didn't care much for these changes, especially her bust area. And the same thing was to be said about her not getting her period. Not getting it didn't concern her. It should have...but it didn't.

Now here she was...

Hiding in the girls bathroom with stained pants and awful stomach pains. Which she now figured out were cramps. So maybe she should have been concerned. At least if she had been worried, Imogen would have been better prepared for this awful day.

The day she " _officially_ " became a woman. It was just day one of her period and already Imogen knew that being a woman sucked.

Imogen let out a cry as she thought about all the things she would have to face now because of her stupid menstrual cycle. However, she had been focusing on her misery and misfortune that she was completely startled when she heard a soft knock on the bathroom stall door.

"Is everything okay in there?" A soft voice came from behind the other side.

 _Crap._

Imogen sniffed her nose. "I-I'm fine." She cried out. _Way to be convincing._

"Are you sure? Because it doesn't sound like you are." The soft voice spoke again. Just listening to it made Imogen's glum feelings want to disappear. "Look, why don't you come out of there."

Despite how sweet sounding this girl was, Imogen's paranoid thoughts from her classmates in her Chemistry classes stopped her from opening the bathroom stall. "I-I can't." She stuttered, her voice wavering.

"What do you mean? Are you hurt?" The girl asked in concern.

 _Was this girl really this nice or was she messing with me?_

Whatever the answer was, Imogen found herself responding back to her. "No, I-I...I'm on my..." She couldn't find it in her seventeen year old self to finish that sentence. It was just too embarrassing for her to do.

There was heavy silence before the girl's voice filled the bathroom. "Oh!" She exclaimed in realization. "Hold on a second." She softly told her. Imogen then heard the girl hurriedly leave the bathroom. The dark haired girl wrapped her arms around her stomach, still embarrassed. Even though the girl had told her to hold on, Imogen didn't expect her to return, but she did.

Soon the bathroom door opened and in came footsteps. They stopped when they reached the stall she was in.

"Here." Imogen recognized the girl's affable voice. As she said this to her, the girl slid a new unopened pad to her under the stall.

Despite her not being able to see her, Imogen shook her head. "B-B-But that's yours." She stammered out.

The girl's kindness didn't falter at her protest. "Don't worry about me. I won't be needing it anytime soon."

Imogen found herself overthinking the way she had told her that. Except the cramps in her stomach and the reminder that she was _bleeding_ in an area where she did not want to bleed, made Imogen grab the pad from the floor. Luckily even with her inexperience, Imogen was able to figure out how to properly put the pad on.

The pad solved one of her problems. The huge red stain on her pants though was very much sill there. Along with those damn awful cramps. The red stain was more serious because it was something that everybody could see. And Imogen did not want to be laughed at again. She wanted to stay hidden inside this stall forever, but she knew that wouldn't be possible.

"How about now? Do you feel a bit better?"

Imogen was indecisive on how to answer her. "Uh...I guess." She finally uttered to her.

"Do you feel like coming out now?"

Imogen wanted to cry out no that she didn't. Except this girl had been extremely nice to her. So she knew better than to say no. The raven haired girl took a deep breath, gaining a hold of her emotions. Once they were somewhat secured, she slowly opened to the bathroom stall door. Although she was reluctant she did want to know the face of the girl who had been nice to her.

Needless to say she was shocked to see who this girl was.

 _Letha Godfrey._

Imogen knew Letha was nice. In fact, Letha was nice to everybody. Still, Imogen's paranoid thoughts made her believe now that Letha knew who she had helped out that she would make a swift exit. The blonde did no such thing. Instead of leaving, Letha stayed in place offering her a kind smile.

"Hey, it's Imogen, right?"

Imogen found herself going a bit red in her cheeks due to her friendliness. "Yeah." She managed to reply to her. She swallowed the lump in her throat. "Um, thank you." She said maintaining eye contact with her. Unlike with her cousin Roman, Imogen was finding it easy to keep eyesight with Letha Godfrey. It was much like whenever she interacted with Shelley. They were much easier to talk too. Actually, Imogen found it more comfortable to keep conversation and eye contact with anyone other than Roman.

"It's no problem." Letha reassured her with gentleness.

Imogen felt awkward now. And it wasn't just because of her stained pants. It had more to do with her standing next to a girl like Letha Godfrey. The O'Dwyer girl felt like a toad being next to this beautiful blonde blue eyed girl. She was thinking about what her next move should be, when another cramp hit her hard. She scrunched up her face and let out a low groan.

"What's wrong?" Letha asked observing how pain filled her face was.

Imogen let out a huff. "It's nothing. Just, uh..."

Connecting the dots, Letha finished that sentence for her. "Cramps."

Imogen slowly nodded her head. "Hmm." She said as she stared into her soft blue eyes.

"If you want I can take you to the nurse's office." Letha selflessly suggested to her. "I know they'll be able to give you some medication for it."

Medication to stop her cramps would be great. Except her stained pants were an issue. Imogen had kept her backside hidden from her, but if she were to walk the hallways the other students (including Letha) would see how she'd stained her pants with period blood.

"I..." Imogen whispered, sheepishly. "My pants..."

It took a few seconds before Letha was able to understood her. Her blue eyes widen. "Oh..." She made a thoughtful face as she looked at her. "You can take off your hoodie and tie it around your waist."

This had Imogen wrap her arms around herself. "No, I-I-I can't take off it." As much as it mortified her, Imogen would rather have people to look at her red stained pants than at the ugly scars she had all over her arms, shoulders, and backside.

Taking in her defensive demeanor, Letha decided on another strategy. She quickly took off the pink sweater she had, leaving her in her white blouse. "Here, take my sweater."

Imogen looked at her in disbelief. She was letting her borrow her sweater? She shook her head. "But it's yours."

Letha gave her a kind smile. "I don't mind really, here." She said offering her sweater.

"I might get it dirty." Imogen said once again shaking her head.

Letha remained persistent. "It's okay." Without anymore objections, the blonde handed her the sweater.

Imogen held onto the sweater with a bemused expression. It took her a brief moment before she slowly wrapped the sweater around her waist. When she was done doing so, she looked up towards the blonde again.

"There." Letha smiled. "Now no one will see."

Imogen nodded her head. "No, they won't." She bit the inside of her cheek. "If I get it _―_ "

"I already said it's okay. Now come on." Letha reassured her once more.

Imogen, however, shyly informed her she still needed to wash her hands. After doing so, without saying anything else the blonde took a gentle hold of one of her hands. They both exited the girls bathroom and started walking the school hallway.

Once they were out there, Imogen's guard was up. She was preparing herself for the ridicule from the students that were lingering around the halls. To her relief no taunts came her way. There were stares, but none made a harsh comment her way. Maybe it had to do with Letha being there with her, or maybe it was because of her sweater wrapped around her to hide the stain, either way Imogen was glad for Letha's company.

As they continued to make their way to the nurse's office, Imogen every now and again would give the blonde discreet stares of esteem. Her admiration for the Letha made her unaware of her surroundings that she was surprised to see Peter. What was more surprising was how the brown shaggy haired boy was pressing his ear against the girls bathroom that resided towards the front of the school.

Letha and her came to a sudden stop. "Peter?" Imogen shakily called out his name.

Peter moved his gaze onto them. He was now looking at the two girls with a deer caught in headlights type of expression. Imogen was confused as to why he was eavesdropping. Was he listening to the girls talking in there? Imogen frowned as she and Letha stared at him with growing puzzled expressions.

It didn't take them long to hear what noises were coming from inside the bathroom.

There was moaning coming from in there. Some girl was clearly having a type of sexual act done on her. Her loud moaning was proof of that.

Imogen blushed and she averted her gaze away from the bathroom. How could people be fornicating in a public setting? And at school no less? Her cheeks warmed up even more just imagining that sort of situation in her head.

Even though the raven haired girl wasn't looking at Peter, Letha was. The blonde girl was giving him a narrowed look. A type that said _'What the hell are you doing?'_ She didn't say anything as she waited to hear what sort of explain he could come up with.

Knowing there was no way to excuse himself from this, Peter gave both girls a sheepish smile. "Uh...this is exactly what it looks like." He lamely informed them.

If she weren't experiencing killer cramps, Imogen might have smiled at his response. She, however, didn't show any signs of amusement. She just wrapped her arms tighter against her stomach.

Peter caught onto this and his frowned. "Hey, you okay?" He asked his friend in worry.

Before she was able to answer him, Letha did it for her. She put a comforting hand on one of Imogen's shoulders for a brief moment. "She'll be okay. I'm taking her to the nurse's office." The blonde explained to the concerned looking teen. Despite not personally knowing him yet, Letha was touched by how worried he was for Imogen. As she and Imogen began to walking away again, she glanced over her shoulder to look at him.

"Have fun with your eavesdropping." Letha lightly joked. Before turning around to face forward, she saw a smile break out on the boy's face.

It was when they were a bit further away that Letha noticed Imogen's staring. No doubt because of the comment she had made. The blonde gave the raven haired girl a simple shrug.

"I couldn't help myself." Letha laughed that sweet sounding laugh of her's.

Surprisingly, Imogen felt her lips curl up in the slightest. "It was kind of funny." She admitted to her.

"So, do you know him?" Letha asked her, curious.

Imogen nodded her head. "Uh, yeah. His name is Peter."

"Is he your friend?" Letha gently inquired.

There was no hesitation in Imogen's response. "Yes, he is." She evenly answered as she nodded her head.

Letha gave her a bright smile before it faltered a little. "That's nice. I mean, he seems nice. Even if he was eavesdropping."

"He is nice and he's not like that. You know...a perv." Imogen said, quick to defend her friend. "I think maybe he was just curious is all..."

"Hmm, guess so." Letha hummed in agreement.

They were quiet the as they continued walking to the nurse's office. However, it wasn't a tense type of quietness. Imogen was finding Letha's company to be...tranquil. Her presence eased away her embarrassment.

The blonde's presence though didn't make her forget about the moans she had heard from the girls bathroom. Once again, Imogen's cheeks turned bright pink. She was just happy she had decided to hide away in the furthest bathroom the school had.

Even if she didn't know the faces to who were inside that bathroom doing whatever sort of sexual acts, Imogen hoped she wouldn't ever have to cross paths with them.

* * *

Roman couldn't help the low hum he was releasing as he walked through the school hallway.

It was now the end of the school day and the taste of that random girl's climax still lingered in his mouth. Not only that but so did her blood. He always liked it whenever the girls he went down on were on their periods.

Roman _savored_ the taste. Although he had enjoyed the carnal act, he was still strangely disappointed and not entirely sated. Yes, he had gone down on a girl (one of his favorite things to do), but it hadn't been the girl he had wanted it to be.

 _Imogen_.

That same familiar desire came up to the surface again. Roman, however, was quick to control himself. He got what he wanted and it still counted...even if it wasn't with Imogen. After all, a hookup was a hookup. Oral sex was very much included in that definition. So for now that sexual act with that girl from his French class settled down his lustful urges he had for the O'Dwyer girl.

Besides, he'll be seeing the raven haired girl again. Real soon...

Reaching his locker, Roman put in his combination and opened it. His green eyes right away came into contact with the item that would promise Imogen's appearance.

Her backpack.

She had left it in class when she had ran off. The O'Dwyer girl never came back to retrieve it, so Roman decided to use it to his advantage. He told their Chemistry teacher he would return it back to Imogen when he'd see her and he had yet to do so.

But he knew she'd eventually have to come around.

She couldn't just leave school without her backpack. The raven haired girl had personal things inside _―_ although there hadn't been much. Besides, the usual textbooks, notebooks, and binder. He knew that because he had taken a look inside. Was that invasion of her privacy? Yes. Did he feel bad about doing that or care? No. Not at all.

Besides the usual school stuff, she didn't have much. The most interesting thing she had inside (other than the pack of S _kittles_ ) was her iPod. The model she had was old and definitely used, but as Roman had come to personally find out, it worked just fine. The music she had downloaded on there was...interesting. Most definitely not something he would ever listen to. They were all old rock and roll songs from what he guessed were from the seventies and eighties. He remembered a few of the bands names. _Quicksilver Messenger Service, The Zombie, and Fleetwood Mac_. The artist's name, _Stevie Nicks_ also kept popping up every time he scrolled down her iPod (who unknown to him was one of the singers from _Fleetwood Mac_ ). However, the last song she had played was _I'd Love To Change The World_ by _Ten Years After._

She had such different taste to things that it just intrigued Roman even more. Imogen O'Dwyer wasn't like all the other typical girls at their school. And Roman was relieved for that. All the girls here (other than Shelley and Letha of course) were a bore to him. They were all only ever good for one thing. Well _several_ things (position wise)...but in the long run that all equaled to sex. From the beginning something told him Imogen was more than that...even if he did have some (well a lot) sexual urges towards her.

After Roman had finished his snooping, he made sure to put her iPod the way he found it before putting it back inside the backpack. So it was like he had never touched it. But now here he was wanting to go through it again. He resisted to do that though. He was out in the halls, so anybody could see him doing that. Just as he was thinking this, the gypsy boy, Peter Rumancek, caught his attention. The shaggy brown haired boy was taking stuff out from his locker. As soon as he closed it he glanced his way. Roman didn't avert his stare. This caused Peter to give him a wary look before he walked off.

This was just one of the many stare offs the two have had since his arrival. It had only increased since their encounter in the middle of last night. Roman knew there was something about him. Something different...like with Imogen. Maybe the rumors about Peter were true. Despite Peter denying it, maybe he was a werewolf. All Roman knew was that he wasn't going to stop pestering until he figured things out. The same thing could be said about whatever little secret Imogen was hiding...

A soft barely even noticeable tap on his shoulder managed to get his attention. He turned around and his green eyes gleamed when they saw who was standing there. It was Imogen. Right away he noticed her change of outfit. He figured she must have gone to the nurse office or something. It wasn't a major outfit difference. She just had on a different pair of pants. They were the sweat pants P.E. teachers would hand out to students who didn't have their regular uniform. She looked quite cozy in them. She also looked to be in less pain. Maybe she was given medication or something. She still had that glow to her skin though. The glow that he was finding more alluring the longer he stared at her. He resisted to flat out grin at the moment. He instead offered her a cool nonchalant greeting.

"Hey." He said giving her a nod.

"Hi." Imogen whispered before clearing her throat. "Can you give this to your cousin...Letha." Imogen didn't want to be anywhere near Roman, but she needed to do. For one, because she wanted to give back Letha her sweater (the one she thankfully hadn't gotten stained), and because as her Chemistry teacher had informed her, Roman had her backpack. So she had the pleasure of talking to him again.

Roman furrowed his eyebrows. He expected Imogen to right away ask for her backpack. She hadn't. For some reason this bothered him. He stared at the said clothing item that belonged to his cousin. "Why do you have her sweater?" He intently asked her.

Imogen bit the inside of her cheek. "She, uh, let me borrow it."

Roman had a good guess as to why she had it. He still inquired an answer out of her. The Godfrey boy tilted his head. "Why?"

"Because of my...you know..." Imogen babbled out.

 _Yes...he did know_. Roman licked his lips suggestively and nodded his head. "Ah, got it." He took the sweater from her, making sure to touch her hand while doing so. He enjoyed how she jumped a little at the skin contact. The bright pink color on her cheeks made Roman's eyes gleam even more. He basked in her flushed sight even as he put his cousin's sweater away.

Imogen ignored the goosebumps that were all over her arms as she pulled her hand away. She was glad Roman was unable to see them, thanks to her own sweater she had on. She cleared her throat. "Also, Mrs. Yates told me you had my backpack." She quietly added. She managed to keep eye contact as she told him this. "Can I have it?"

"Sure." Roman simply said. His face broke out into a grin when he turned around to get her backpack from his locker. The grin disappeared when he faced her again. "Here you go." He told her holding out her backpack in a sort of challenging way.

Imogen stared at it and his hand. She quickly grabbed her backpack, ignoring how his hand grazed hers for a brief second. She then adjusted her backpack over her shoulder. "Thanks..." She muttered out to him.

Roman's lips curled upwards. "You're welcome." His stare discreetly went from the top of her head to down her body. "I hope you're feeling better."

 _She was._

After Letha had taken her to the school nurse, Imogen was given a fresh pair of pants. Along with medication for her cramps. Which diminished the pain by a lot. She was also allowed to stay the at the nurse's office until she felt better. Imogen used that excuse to stay the rest of the day in there. Since there was no way she was going to be able to handle the teasing by her classmates. She would deal with that tomorrow. She just needed today to get away.

The sudden realization that it had been Roman who had wished her to feel better made Imogen blush. Her flustered state just got worse due to his intense staring. She awkwardly moved one of her legs. "I am." Although she didn't want to continue talking to him, there was a question that was eating her up inside. She just had to ask him. The O'Dwyer girl pushed away any weird feelings he was causing her. Her brown eyes studied his exterior. "You didn't make fun of me in class and you're not now." She shyly pointed out. Puzzlement was seen in her expression. "How come?"

Roman's intense staring became faint now. "Why would I make fun of you? Just because you had your period? So what? It's not that big of a deal." He nonchalantly told her.

Imogen lowered her eyes. She now felt foolish to have even asked him such question. "Everyone else seems to think so."

"Yeah, well, they're fresh farm cunts." Roman spewed out causing Imogen to look back at him with wide eyes. The raven haired girl knew the Godfrey boy had a vast choice of curse words, but this one in particular took her by surprise.

Roman fought the urge to grin at her shocked expression. Imogen's face was too winsome to gaze at. He however controlled himself. "Don't listen to a word they say. They're idiots. You'd think they would have the maturity to act normal around a girl on her period, but I guess not. Especially towards a girl who was going through her first one."

This made Imogen frown."What makes you think this was my first time getting it?" She questioned feeling embarrassed and slightly insulted. She had no idea why she felt insulted, she just did.

Roman's expression was filled with mild endearment. "For one your shocked facial expression said it all. And you were bleeding a lot. Typically when a girl is going through their first menstrual cycle that's when they bleed the most. Also it looked like you were in severe pain the whole time. Which of course was because of the cramps. Another normal occurrence in females when they have their first period."

This had Imogen thrown into a loop. He spoke so normally about the whole period thing that it seemed he knew more than her. This made Imogen look at him in amazement and bewilderment. "Why do you know so much about periods?" She questioned.

Roman shrugged his shoulders. "I have a curious mind that needs to be fed." He licked his lips as he acutely took in her clothing covered form. "A very curious mind."

Once again uncomfortable by his intense stare, Imogen blushed. She quickly averted her eyes from him. "That's not weird or anything."

Her edginess made a sense of pleasure surge through Roman. "To each their own, right?" He released a chuckle. "I know random strange information and so do you."

Imogen looked at him again. "What do you mean?" She asked, frowning.

"You're always saying something random and strange." Roman swiftly pointed out to her.

Imogen's eyes harden a bit. "I do not." There was a thoughtful pause. "And even if I did, there's nothing wrong with the information I know. It's very informative I tell you."

 _Informative? She certainly was something else._

"Oh, like that cigarette one you told me?" Roman reminded her with a ribbed tone.

Imogen was oblivious to how he was teasing her. She was taking him seriously. "That one is very important to know! Smoking is a serious hazard and people need to be aware of the consequences."

"You have to admit the whole you lose seven to eleven minutes of your life every time you smoke is random, if not a little strange." Roman commented as he took out a pack of cigarettes from his blazer. He took out one cigarette before putting the pack back inside. After he took out his lighter and lit his cigarette, he saw the look Imogen was giving him. "What?" He questioned after taking a drag. "You think that would stop me from smoking?"

Imogen pursed her lips, clearly annoyed. "No, I guess not." She eyed the cigarette with distaste. "At least wait until you're outside."

"Look at you, fretting over me." Roman grinned. "That's _cute_." He said after he exhaled smoke away from her.

"You could get in trouble." Imogen insisted, ignoring his last comment.

Roman let out another puff of smoke. "Like I give a shit."

 _Well, then._...Imogen let out a low scoff. Having enough of him, she began to walk away, only to stop right away when she heard his hypnotic voice again.

"By the way, Mrs. Yates, still wants us to finish our assignment." Roman coolly said to her.

 _Crap._

That was true. Mrs. Yates had told her that when she had gone to see her after leaving the nurses office. Imogen however wasn't really expecting Roman to even bring that topic up. She thought she was just gonna finish the assignment on her own...guess not. Perhaps, he did care about his academic status after all...

"She said we didn't have to do the actual lab part, but we need to finish the written part down for sure." Roman explained to her. He took in her form, waiting to hear her response.

Imogen nodded her head. "Okay, that won't be a problem. Uh, we can work on it together." She didn't want to associate with him outside of school, but her Chemistry grade depended in on it. She'd have to endure his company longer than necessary...

Roman pulled the cigarette away from his lips. "I'm free today, later in the afternoon."

"Okay...I guess that'll work." Imogen lowly replied.

"Where do you want to meet up?" Roman asked her.

Imogen frowned at such question. "Meet up?"

"To finish our assignment?" Roman obviously drawled on, furrowing his eyebrows a bit.

"Right!" Imogen exclaimed like a idiot. "Um..." She did not want him coming over to her place. Her grandmother wouldn't be there until later on. Except she also didn't want to go to his place either. There was a third option...a better one.

"We could meet up at the coffee shop? The one on _―"_

"I know which one you're talking about." Roman was quick to reply to her. How could he not? It was the coffee shop he had been silently watching her since she had arrived here.

"How do you know which one?" Imogen warily asked him.

Roman didn't panic, he instead remained suave. "Because this damn town only has one coffee shop."

Now Imogen felt foolish for her suspicions. "Of course..." She said sounding embarrassed.

"Let's meet there around five. Give me your number just in case." Roman said ready to take out his cellphone to get her contact information. He stopped reaching for his phone when he saw her standing still.

Imogen saw his bemused expression and let out a sigh. "I'll meet you there at five, but I can't give you my number."

"Why not?" Roman questioned, slightly bothered. The hold he had on his cigarette had tighten enough that it made ashes fall onto the ground.

Imogen, however, didn't notice this. Something else was gaining her attention.

Herself.

Now Imogen had no idea what caused her to say the thing she said next. All she knew was that she felt comfortable enough to make such a free caring comment. For now anyways.

"Because I don't believe in using modern technology." Imogen dourly informed him.

Roman stared at her as if she had grown three heads. "What?" He questioned in disbelief.

This caused Imogen to break her serious character. "I'm only kidding." She said let out a noise that sounded like a genuine laugh. Before Roman was able to read into it, Imogen became her caged self again."I can't because I don't have a cellphone right now. I broke my last one and well I've been meaning to get a new one. Just haven't found the time." She had a feeling that even if she did have her cellphone, she would have made some other excuse for her to not give her number. At least this one was the honest truth.

It took him a few seconds for a grin to appear on Roman's face. "You got me there for a sec, _partner_."

She knew that partner thing was a Chemistry inside joke, but she was no longer comfortable to endure his presence. So Imogen just nodded her head as she started to back away. "Right...well, I'll see you later then." And without saying anything else to him, she left, practically speed walking down the hall.

Roman almost let out another chuckle at her shy quirky self.

Imogen O'Dwyer left him feeling a whirl of emotions.

Sometimes Roamn wanted to harmlessly tease her to see her blush, but he also wanted to shield Imogen away from all the bullshit this school and town had (like he did with Shelley). Except other times (which was most of the time), Roman wanted experience such intense intimacy with Imogen. Like how he had imagined it was her he had gone down on and not that girl from his French class.

Imogen O'Dwyer was like an enigma to him. Her sudden friendliness and then shyness didn't make things easier for him to process.

As his thoughts zeroed in on her, Roman dropped the cigarette he had onto the floor and carelessly stepped on it.

Maybe...just maybe... he was breaking through to her faster than he thought he would. Maybe that was why she was being skittish right after she was starting to loosen up with him.

A grin appeared on Roman's face at that thought.

Yes... _maybe_ that was the reason why.

Roman was for sure going to use this little "meet up" with her to his advantage.

He'd have her...sooner or later.

However, sooner was what he was aiming for.

The sooner he would feel her underneath him moaning, the better.


	8. Chapter 8

**_Disclaimer:_** _I do not own Hemlock Grove or any of the characters. I only own my OC._

 **A/N:** _Hey guys! Holy Moly, I've been getting notifications for this story. Which I just want to say thanks! You guys are giving me more motivation to keep writing! Enjoy this filler chapter with more Imogen and Roman scenes. As you will soon find out, I had fun writing this chapter. *Tehehe* (;_

 _ **P.S.** Sorry for the small Harry Potter reference - I went to Universal Studious yesterday and I got to go on the Harry Potter ride for the first time and I loved it. I also got Luna Lovegood's wand :D I'm just very happy that is all LOL _

* * *

_"This connection we have isn't going away, it's only getting stronger. Because the more I spend time with her, the closer I want to be."_ _― Simone Elkeles, Perfect Chemistry_

* * *

 _ **Chapter 8: Eyes are the windows to the soul**_

 **A few hours later**

Imogen walked into Hemlock Grove's small coffee shop with a peaceful smile.

Walking in here always brighten up her mood.

She _loved_ the smell of coffee.

Back when she lived in San Francisco (a place she considered _heaven_ on earth in comparison to Hemlock Grove) she used to go this small Indie coffee shop that was a five minute walk away from her old apartment. She _loved_ it there. It was her favorite hang out spot.

Well, used to be.

Ever since moving to Hemlock Grove, the raven haired girl missed that Indie coffee shop. Or to be more honest with herself, she missed living in San Francisco.

Now it's not to say she didn't like this small town's coffee shop. Imogen had to admit Hemlock Grove's coffee shop was nice and quiet. It had become her safety spot. She felt at complete ease here. Coffee was what got her through the day, and she especially needed a warm doze of caffeine after the hard day she's had so far.

However, whatever ebullient feelings Imogen was having went away as she looked around the coffee shop. It now dawned on her again why she was here. She wasn't here to relax or to read a novel of her choosing...no she was here because she needed to finish her Chemistry assignment with Roman Godfrey of all people.

Readjusting her backpack over her shoulder, Imogen sighed and walked over to the usual table she sat at. Her observations informed her the dark blonde haired boy wasn't here yet. So she was left there to wait for his appearance. It was the exact time they had agreed on to meet, yet he wasn't there. His absence just meant she was going to do the assignment by herself, but she had no problem with that. She couldn't help the feelings of relief she was having.

As she took a seat, Imogen let her backpack slide off her shoulder onto the floor. She unzipped her backpack and took out her Chemistry notebook and pencil. She then opened her notebook to the page she had left off in class. Normally she would have ordered her coffee before sitting down, but for today Imogen decided to finish her assignment first before getting her order. She just wanted to get this done with already.

Just as she was about to start writing again, Imogen was slightly startled. The familiar sound of the door bells go off filled the air. That only meant someone had entered the coffee shop. Even before looking up towards that direction, Imogen already knew who had just entered. However that didn't stop the dumbfounded expression that was being displayed on her face.

With a type of distinct swagger in his steps, Roman made his way to where she was sitting at. "Hey." He said giving her a half-hearted wave once he was standing in front of the table.

Imogen blinked a few times."Hi." She greeted shyly, surprised.

Roman found her astonishment to be cute. He let out a chuckle. "What? You think I'd bail on you?"

 _I was hoping you would._ Imogen cleared her throat and shook her head. "No, not at all."

Roman gestured to her notebook. "Don't tell me you already starting working?"

"Uh...no." Imogen replied, embarrassed. For some reason his question had her feeling quite foolish with herself. Almost as if she had done something silly.

"Good." Roman's gaze went to the front counter and then back to her. "So, what do you want?" The Godfrey boy asked her already knowing her preferred order by heart. Except he couldn't right away order what she liked. That would look suspicious...

Thrown back by his generosity, Imogen looked at him awkwardly. "Oh, that's okay. I don't want anything." She gently protested.

From where he was standing, Roman looked right into her eyes. The same large wide dark set eyes that gave her a distinct look from all the others girls he's crossed paths with. Eyes that he was starting to like more by each passing day. "I'm not taking no for an answer." He said sounding serious. Seeing her cheeks turn a shade of pink under his stare made him want to ravish her more. He, however, controlled himself. He licked his lips, taking a softer approach. "Now what do you want?"

Naturally his intense staring made Imogen blush like crazy. She felt her stomach twist again, but she knew this time it wasn't because of her cramps. Those murky green eyes of his were leaving a heavy impact on her. She fumbled with her response. "Um, a caramel mocha latte."

"Is that all?" Roman amusingly asked. He knew her order wasn't complete. Not without the _..._

"With extra whip cream." Imogen bashfully told him. Why did that sound so wrong to her? It was a simple request, yet her stomach did another twist and her blushing intensified.

Roman grinned liking her mousy tone of voice. She sounded so embarrassed and innocent. It was absolutely _enthralling_. "I'll be right back."

Imogen's breathing finally steadied when she watched him leave to get their orders. Once she saw him talking to the female employee behind the counter, she averted her eyes down to the table. She scolded herself for being so affected by him. Damn her shy characteristics and Roman's ability to make her shrink under his potent staring. Besides her introverted personality, she blamed those murky green eyes of his.

Overall she was different. An awkward excuse for a human being. Except she's kind of always been that way. Not so much when she had lived in San Francisco, but ever since moving to Hemlock Grove (after the car accident she was in) her self confidence went down the drain. It didn't help that most of her classmates treated her harshly or how weirdly nice and intense Roman was being to her.

The Godfrey boy was being strangely civil to her.

Imogen had a feeling it was because of the encounter she, him, and Peter had the night before. A night she didn't like to think about that. It might have been an naive thing to do but she wanted to move past that night and forget about it. Except something told her Roman wasn't about to drop anything concerning that night.

The chair next to her being pulled out made her jump a bit. Her thoughts faltered and the grip she had on her pencil loosened as she found herself looking at Roman again. Now that he was sitting down and being sort of the same height, Imogen felt less timid _―well,_ not by a lot.

Roman slid her order of coffee to her along with the muffin he had been skillfully holding in his left hand. He then took a sip of his own order of regular coffee with his right hand. Imogen had to keep her face free from any awe because of how skilled that carrying order for him must have been like. She herself could barely carry two things without her hands shaky from nerves. The sight of her usual order of a caramel mocha latte with extra whip cream made her want to break into a smile. However no smile came, just a bemused expression. A small frown then appeared on Imogen's face from looking at the chocolate pastry next to her coffee. "What's this?"

Roman shrugged his shoulders. "A chocolate muffin." He said stating the obvious before taking another sip from his own coffee.

Imogen huffed. She _knew_ that. She narrowed her eyes at his now sitting form. "I know that. What I mean is why did you get it?" It's not like she wasn't grateful...it just that his kindness seemed kind of iffy. Like there was something more to it...

Roman lowered his cup of coffee onto the table. He gave her a earnest expression, once again shamefully staring deep into her eyes."Chocolate's good for girls when they're on their... you _know_." He blandly explained to her.

Even with a cool voice, Imogen was still able to point out the teasing underneath his vocal surface. Now unlike with her classmates, she didn't get embarrassed by Roman. No instead she got irritated by the humor that was aimed towards her. And as much as she wanted to lash out, kept her composure...or at least _tried_ to. A few seconds passed with them just staring at each other before Imogen finally decided to end the intense staring match between them.

"Geez, thanks." Imogen muttered, still feeling slightly irked.

Roman gave her a roguish smile. "You're welcome."

With attitude aimed towards him this time, Imogen made a show of ignoring the muffin and instead grabbed her coffee.

This didn't upset Roman at all. He knew him buying her that muffin would annoy her _―_ especially after what he told her about how chocolate is good for her when she's on her period. He couldn't help teasing her a little. The raven haired girl was just too cute for him to not mess with. Besides, it wasn't harsh teasing...to him it was completely harmless. She wasn't crying her eyes out but instead looked completely done with him. Which of course just made Roman want to continue his harmless teasing on her.

Imogen took a sip of her coffee, closing her eyes for a brief second there. The familiar taste of caffeine and caramel filled her mouth. She _loved_ this taste. Her annoyance towards Roman almost went away, but came back with full force when he opened his mouth.

"So, _partner_." Roman grinned, pleased to see how much she was enjoying the coffee. "Shall we start?"

Blushing, Imogen got back on track. She put her coffee back down and grabbed for her pencil and notebook again. However she looked at Roman again when she gave him a piece of paper and extra pencil to write with...since he didn't bring _anything_ school related with him. Thank God she had the worksheet with her.

Roman gave her what she assumed was a ' _thank you'_ grin, but to Imogen it just made that familiar twist in her stomach return. Without saying else to the Godfrey boy, Imogen focused on the assignment. And even though she wasn't looking his way, the raven haired girl once again could feel Roman's penetrating gaze.

* * *

For the next thirty minutes or so they worked silently on their Chemistry assignment. Each of them looked at the worksheet in front of them and did separate problems, dividing the work in half. Fair enough. Well, it should have been but after they had finished, Imogen wanted to double check all their work. As it turns out most of the problems Roman did were wrong. So of course Imogen went back to correct them. And as much as she didn't want to, she found herself explaining to Roman why they were wrong. Essentially offering her help...

It seemed like he was actually listening to her...which was nice.

However, what she wasn't aware of was how Roman was discreetly looking at her lips as she explained the Chemistry problems to him. Her lips that looked so soft and were probably untainted from such intimate acts like kissing. That was something Roman wanted to be the first in doing to her. His attention then traveled to her skin. Well, only to the parts she was showing that is. As he knows know (but doesn't know why) Imogen didn't like showing her skin, and that was something that intrigued and frustrated Roman. There were many times when he wanted to feel her warmth underneath his own hands...like right now. Sadly, touching skin to skin was out of the plan...for now that is.

As Imogen had finished explaining and correcting the last problem, indicating their time together was almost over, Roman decided to do something coquettish with her. It wasn't skin to skin contact, but it was still touching. Slowly he moved his right foot underneath the table, purposely touching one of Imogen's feet.

Feeling his foot touching hers immediately made Imogen jump in her seat. Roman though played the innocent character and didn't move his foot. No, he instead brought it even more closer to her's. "Uh, Roman..." She drawled, blushing. Despite wanting to kick him away from her, she couldn't for the life of her move away.

"Yeah?" Roman replied acting unaware at how flustered he was making her.

Imogen cleared her throat. "Your foot is touching mine."

Roman chuckled dropping his act. "I know."

Imogen felt some of her shyness turn into annoyance again. This time she was able to move her foot away. She gave Roman a hard look while doing so. In return the dark blonde just grinned, his green eyes gleaming with amusement. Imogen huffed before taking one last sip from her coffee, she put the cup down unaware of the whip cream remains that stayed on her lower lip after the sip.

Using this as a opportunity to touch her lips of all places, Roman gently used one of his thumbs to wipe the whip cream off. He then licked the whip cream from his thumb, keeping eye contact with her while doing so. "Hmm." Roman hummed exhilarated that he was tasting something that had been on her lips. He flashed her another one of his grins. "Now that's s _weet_."

Imogen's mouth opened wide. Her cheeks burned with not only over the top shock, but from intoxicating feelings as well. She stared at the grinning Roman with a dazed look in her eye. "Uh..." She uttered out lamely. What was she supposed to say after that?

Roman, however, just continued the conversation as if nothing had happened.

"So, have you spoken to our _friend_ , Peter?" The Godfrey boy suddenly asked out of the blue.

The way he said friend _―_ indicating Peter was his friend too, is what brought Imogen back from her stupor. She narrowed her eyes at him. "He's my friend, not yours."

Roman scoffed at how protective she sounded. "Imogen, after what happened last night with the three of us meeting at the same place, I think it's obvious we've entered friendship territory. So Peter's my friend, just like you're my friend." _My special female friend who I want to get to know intimately._ Roman licked his lips as he saw her take all this in. When she remained cool and distant, he spoke up again, more earnest. "Look, you can't deny we all have a connection of some sorts with each other. I mean, Peter's something different. You know he is, you can feel it. So, maybe he's a werewolf...just like how you're a witch."

Hot anger flashed through her at that accusation. Not only for Peter, but for herself as well. "I am _not_ a witch." Imogen exasperated to him. How many times was she going to have to say this?

"Come on..." Roman said, deciding to be more forward with her. He felt now was the time to egg her on with his persistence of finding out the truth of what she was. "Tell me a spell. You must at least know one."

 _He wanted to hear a spell? Okay then...she'll tell him a damn spell._

Deciding to play along, just to amuse him in hopes he would drop the subject, Imogen sighed. "Fine, you want to hear one?" She got a secretive look as she leaned towards him a bit. " _Expecto Patronum_." She muttered looking right into his eyes.

"What does that mean?" Roman asked, totally fooled by her. That sounded like a real spell to him.

Imogen held her laughter at how excited he appeared to be. "It means..." She lost her artful demeanor and calmly leaned back against her seat. "You don't watch a lot of _Harry Potter._ " She could have sworn he saw Roman's lips curl upwards at that comment, but Imogen didn't want to over analyze it. After she said this, Imogen grabbed their Chemistry assignment and stuffed into her backpack. "I'll be going now." She informed him adjusting her backpack over her right shoulder. "Don't worry about the assignment, I'll turn it in first thing in the morning." She grabbed her empty cup of coffee and threw into the trash can that was next to their table. Imogen then began walking away from the table.

Roman called out her name reluctantly making her stop walking to glance back at him.

"You forgot to eat your muffin." He said knowing that would irk her even more. Roman controlled the full on amusement that wanted to fill his facial features.

Imogen kept her gaze empty from any annoyance. Instead she gave him a neutral look. "You eat it. I hear eating chocolate can also enhance a person's cognitive performance."

And with that being said, Imogen left the coffee shop.

Her witty remark left Roman with a gleam in his eyes and a impressed grin of his face.

It left him pleased knowing he was getting underneath that layered covered skin of hers.


	9. Chapter 9

_**Disclaimer:** I do not own Hemlock Grove or any of the characters. I only own my OC._

 _ **A/N:** Hello my fellow wonderful readers! A lot of you are wondering if Imogen is a witch or not. If you follow my Tumblr page the answer to this question could be found in a post I did a while ago. In case you're not following me then I'll tell you now - no she's not a witch. But she is something else. She's not one hundred percent human. Now I did revel what exactly she is on my Tumblr. I won't say what she is on here yet. If you want to know what supernatural being she is you're gonna need to go to my Tumblr page and find out on your own. *Tehehe* (;_

 _ **P.S.** Shout out to January Lily for the new story cover she did. Thank you once again!_

* * *

 _"How can you know what you're capable of if you don't embrace the unknown?" ― Esmeralda Santiago, Conquistadora_

* * *

 _ **Chapter 9: Not entirely human**_

When Imogen finally arrived back home she found her grandmother in the kitchen eating dinner. By the looks of it she had made chili. That was her known specialty. Imogen's stomach grumbled when she got a whiff of the delicious meal. Just as she had set down her backpack onto the floor, Agatha's gaze went from her meal to look onto her form. The older woman right away gave her granddaughter a warm welcoming smile.

"There you are. I was beginning to wonder when you were going to show up. What have you been up to?" Agatha asked her. Her granddaughter wasn't really one to show up this late. Well not unless she was out in town or hanging at the coffee shop. Except she usually left a note letting her know of such activity. There hadn't been a note this time when she had arrived back to the trailer. Agatha found this to be odd and it made her even more curious to know where she had been.

"I'm sorry, I was at the coffee shop." Imogen sheepishly apologized to her. In her nervous state due to meeting up with Roman, she had forgotten to write a note to her grandmother explaining she was going to be late. "It's just that I needed to finish an assignment with my Chemistry partner."

Agatha perked up when hearing this. The thought of her granddaughter actually associating with someone else her age was such a positive thing. "Oh, well that's fine, sweetie. Who's your partner? Is it that boy...Peter? Our neighbor?" Agatha hoped that it was. From the last time she had seen the brown shaggy haired boy, him and Imogen seemed to be getting along pretty well. Even if he did give off unnatural vibes (vibes that Agatha knew were because of what he _was_ ), she knew he wasn't a real threat. Not for now anyways, and especially not to her granddaughter.

Imogen fidgeted with her fingers and lowered her eyes. "No...it was with someone else." Her voice had lowered, reluctant to tell her who she had been actually working with. She hoped her grandmother wouldn't notice, but alas she did.

Agatha frowned a little when she noticed how unforthcoming Imogen had become. "Who were you working with then?"

Imogen didn't want to say who but she knew lying wasn't an option. She never liked lying to her grandmother. Well not unless there was a serious reason too, but there was no major reason to lie right now. She took deep breath and looked at her again. "Roman Godfrey..." She answered as if she was confessing an embarrassing secret of hers.

That infamous last name made Agatha's eyes widen and she felt chills go down her spine. She dropped the spoon she was holding. " _Godfrey_? Oh..." She certainly was not expecting to hear that. She got up from her seat and walked to where the kitchen stove was. She kept her back to her granddaughter as she started serving her dinner.

Imogen stepped forward and stared at her grandmother's backside. The kitchen was now full of awkward tension. "What is it?" She asked not only because of the tension, but also because of the discontent she heard in her grandmother's tone of voice.

"Are you friends with him?" Agatha asked without even looking at Imogen. Her voice was dour and not at all go happy like it usually was. Imogen found this to be extremely odd and it made her feel even more on edge. Despite her not turning around to see her, Imogen shook her head as she answered back.

"No." Imogen replied as she once again fidgeted with her fingers. "We're just Chemistry partners that's all."

Agatha released a sigh and nodded her head, relieved. When she turned to face her again no signs of discontent could be found on her face. "I'm glad that you're not." She walked to set the bowl she had for Imogen on the table and sat down again.

Imogen was quick to sit down next to her. She picked up her own spoon and pushed the chili that was in the bowl around. Although she was hungry, her grandmother's relief of her not being friends with Roman had her bemused. "Why's that?" She found herself asking. Despite not being Roman's biggest fan, Imogen wanted to know why her grandmother was glad they weren't friends. It was evident just by her tone of voice that her grandmother had a negative view on Roman.

Agatha became tense again. She had her reasons as to why she didn't want her granddaughter associating with Roman Godfrey of all people. The obvious (but small) reason was because of the bad attention the name Godfrey attracted. Agatha didn't want Imogen dealing with more drama just because of that family. And then there was the main reason why Agatha didn't want Imogen close to Roman. Unlike with Peter, Agatha sensed a real danger with Roman. Even though she didn't know what he was exactly, she knew he could become a real threat to Imogen.

Now unfortunately Agatha couldn't be up front with Imogen with all this, not unless she would to reveal what she was. And Agatha couldn't do that. That was something Imogen needed to discover on her own (if she ever would, that is). Agatha cleared her throat."He just doesn't sit well with me." She decided to say to her. "That whole family besides the youngest daughter don't sit well with me."

Her grandmother was sort of right about that. Out of all the Godfrey's, Shelley was the one that was the most kind hearted and well mannered. However, up until recently, Imogen was proven that another Godfrey, besides Shelley held kindness in them. It was because of this that Imogen had a need to say this to her grandmother. "Letha Godfrey isn't so bad." Imogen shyly told her.

Agatha became puzzled by that comment. She furrowed her eyebrows. "Really? Why do you say that?"

Imogen let go of her spoon and tapped her fingers on to table. "Because she was nice to me and took me to the nurse's office."

Agatha's expression became one of concern. "The nurse's office? What happened that you needed to go to the nurse's office? Are you alright?"

The finger tapping stopped at how concerned her grandmother now looked. Imogen sighed knowing she would have to tell grandmother about her dreaded period incident. As much as she didn't want to think about that mortifying moment, Imogen knew it wouldn't hurt talking to her. Besides, if she couldn't talk to her grandmother about this "womanly" stuff, then who else would she be able to confide in? She took a deep breath and felt a mild stomach cramp as she spoke.

" _Well_..."

A few minutes later, after telling her grandmother everything that had happened (well except for the part about her classmates laughing because of her stained pants, since she decided to leave that harsh part out), Imogen and her became quiet. Although the air was filled with sheepish vibes (mostly coming from Imogen), the raven haired girl felt slightly better now that she got to talk about what she went through today.

"Oh my..." Agatha finally said something ending the silence. Tender sympathy could be seen in her eyes. "You poor thing. Having to go through with that during school." She shook her head, disappointed with herself. "How had I not notice the signs? The stomach ache clearly had been because of cramps." She gave her granddaughter a apologetic look. "I'm sorry I wasn't able to help you sooner."

"It's okay." Imogen said trying to settle down any guilt her grandmother was feeling. "I mean, I had no clue either."

"Yes, but I'm the adult. I'm supposed to know these things." Agatha sighed, and then after a pause she took a lighthearted approach to the subject in hand. "I blame my old age."

That got Imogen to smile a little. "I feel a little better now."

"Do you really?" Agatha asked her.

Imogen shrugged her shoulders. "Well a little. I still have cramps but there not as bad as before."

"Cramps are usually the worst at the beginning of your period. They tend to settle down as time goes on." Agatha advised her. She paused and then tilted her head. Now that she's had her period, Agatha needed to know something. "Your mom did give you the talk right?" She asked, her voice low.

Imogen blinked. "The talk? You mean the whole menstrual cycle talk...yeah. Why?"

Agatha shook her head. "No, not just the menstrual talk. I mean, did she ever talk to you about..." She drawled on until Imogen understood what she meant.

Imogen's eyes widen and her expression became one of sheer embarrassment. " _Grandma_!" She shouted blushing mad red.

"I'm just asking." Agatha said trying her hardest to not laugh at the expression Imogen had on. After a few seconds she became serious again. "I myself was a late bloomer. I didn't get my menstrual cycle until close to being eighteen. My mother was never open about that stuff because it was so sensitive to her, so I was lost. I just want to make sure that you're well informed, that's all."

Once Imogen calmed down from her embarrassment she gave her grandmother a small nod. "My mother and I did have a talk about...sex." She felt weird saying that word out-loud. Sex in general had always made her uncomfortable.

"So, you know now that you've gotten your period that you can get pregnant if you were to ever have unprotected _―"_

"Yes! I know!" Imogen blurted out not wanting to hear the end of that sentence. "And trust me, you don't have to worry about that."

"I don't?" Agatha asked, bemused.

"Yes." Imogen confirmed firmly.

Agatha nodded her head. "Well, just know if you ever need to talk to someone about anything...I'm here." She gently informed her granddaughter.

"Thanks grandma." Imogen mumbled as she looked down at her bowl of chili.

"That reminds me. We should go buy you some sanitary pads." Agatha announced ending the silence once more. "That is unless you prefer tampons?"

"No, pads are fine." Imogen assured her. She didn't want to think about using tampons, pads already freaked her out. Anything else near her downstairs area would have just freaked her out more. "I already have some though."

"The nurse gave some to you?"

"Uh, no, Letha did."

Agatha rose an eyebrow. "Letha Godfrey?"

"She gave me hers after we left the nurses office." Imogen said in a low voice. Luckily it hadn't been too many that she was able to carry on her own. "I told you she isn't so bad."

" _Yes_..." Agatha drawled on, still not one hundred percent convinced. "That was nice of her to do that." _Way too nice..._ what girl would give all her sanitary pads to another girl? One is understandable. That's just being polite. But the whole lot? Why would she do that? Wouldn't she need to eventually use them for herself? That was very kind, yet odd, for her to do.

Once again Imogen heard the heavy discontent in grandmother's tone of voice. She soften her gaze, catching her attention. "Just because I get along with her doesn't mean I'm gonna friends with Roman." Imogen gravely told her. "There's no way I'll ever be friends with him."

Having controlled her thoughts, Agatha said nothing, just nodded her head.

After that they silently ate their dinner. Although she kept eating, Agatha was no longer hungry. Despite Imogen denying she'd never be friends with Roman, her words did nothing to lessen the worry she had for her.

* * *

Imogen had arrived to school earlier than usual the next day. She wanted to get there before the school hallway was crowded with loud overbearing students. The raven haired girl knew she would still have to face their teasing, but at least she'd be there before their arrival. Some how that made her feel better.

By the time the hallway started to get full with students, Imogen had already grabbed the stuff she needed from her locker. Instead of taking refuge in her Calculus class, she remained out in the hallway. There was a reason for this and that was because she was staring intently at the glass cage that kept the school's snake locked safely inside.

It was a boa constrictor and whenever passing by it the reptile always caught her attention.

Perhaps it was because of that dream she had, but the snake today seemed more interesting to watch than usual. Or maybe it was because of the new info regarding it's species that the school had put inside it's glass cage. Imogen read the info thoroughly, with one specific part sticking out the most to her.

 _Some boa constrictors don't need males to reproduce. Parthenogenesis has been observed in these large reptiles. Parthenogenesis is a form of asexual reproduction that involves the development of an egg into an individual without fertilization._

Imogen blinked several times after reading that. Now that was certainly _interesting_ information. She found that to be very fascinating. Especially the asexual part. She knew the term asexual held different meanings. It had it's scientific meaning and then it's social meaning. By social terms the raven haired girl knew what asexual meant. It meant a person who lacked sexual interest for either gender. This term held importance to her because if Imogen had to label her sexuality asexual is what she'd say she was. That or demisexual, but Imogen had yet to find anyone she'd be able to form a special connection with. Not that she was actually looking for that special someone since being in a relationship (let alone getting kissed by someone for the first time) was way down on her bucket list...like way, way, down.

At the age of seventeen (almost eighteen) her lack of sexual experience should have bothered her...but it didn't. Imogen could care less about how she wasn't acting in sexual actives like all the others girls in her school were. She had better things to focus on...like this snake. Imogen continued to read some of the other facts out-loud, when a very familiar male voice interrupted her.

"School is about to begin and yet I find you talking to a snake. How very... _you_."

Imogen let out a sigh. She was already beginning to feel annoyance arise within her. "I wasn't talking to it." She confirmed as she turned to look at Roman. When she did this she saw how he was standing next to her, staring back and forth from the glass cage to her. His staring was once again making her feel small and flustered. She however wasn't about to make her discomfort known. "I was just reading the info that's inside."

Roman narrowed his eyes at said information before moving his scrutinizing gaze onto her again. "I thought girls were supposed to be afraid of snakes."

"Well, I'm not." Imogen responded with an evened tone of voice. "I actually like snakes."

 _She liked snakes?_ Roman was puzzled by such answer. This was the first time he's known a girl who liked snakes. Usually the girls at his school avoided the glass cage in the hallway because of how frighten they were of the boa constrictor that resided inside. Even his darling sister Shelley, who _loved_ animals tended to avoid this particular side of the school. Although that might have been more because of the rowdy freshmen that sometimes hung out around there. Still, he was curious as to why Imogen liked snakes. Mainly his curiosity was because of the dream he had. The same dream that of course had a snake in it. "Why?" He asked.

"Snakes are very fascinating creatures." Imogen told him as she stared at the snake in awe. Even though she didn't want to talk to Roman, random facts popped into her mind and she couldn't stop herself from saying at least one of them out-loud."For example, did you know that the warmer a snake's body is, the more quickly it can digest it's prey. Normally it takes three to five days for a snake to properly digest a meal. Except it's different for large snakes like anacondas. For them it can take weeks to digest a full meal."

Roman lips curled upwards at her weird knowledge. She was like an encyclopedia full of random facts. "Of course you would know that."

Imogen blushed and was swift to make an excuse. A very lame one that is. "I remember hearing that in a documentary on animal planet."

Roman didn't say anything, just shook his head slightly and laughed.

Imogen bristled at that. Her attention on the snake faltered and she gave the Godfrey boy a side glance. "Is there a reason why you're talking to me?" She asked letting her irritated emotions get the better of her. As she has come to realize now (thanks to their coffee shop meet up), talking to Roman often got her irked feelings to come out to the surface. "We've already finished the assignment and I'm going to turn it in. There's no need for you to associate with me anymore."

Instead of being thrown back by her firm demeanor, Roman was finding it amusing and winsome. "What can I say?" He replied shrugging his shoulders. "I like talking to you."

Imogen facial features mixed with puzzlement and disbelief.

 _"Why?_ "

Roman licked his lips. "Because you're not normal." He stated as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. The Godfrey boy was trying to get under her skin like he had done at the coffee shop. He liked it when shy Imogen got fiery.

 _Not this again._ Imogen was flabbergasted at that answer. She had hoped for some strange reason that he'd drop this whole "witch" thing...guess he wasn't. She harden her eyes on him. "I am _normal_." She had to be normal. Thinking otherwise made her stomach upset, and she did not want an upset stomach. Not when she was still on her period.

Roman chuckled. "No, you're not."

Imogen wasn't going to stand there and listen to his derision. She rolled her eyes and walked passed him.

"Has anyone ever given you a nickname?" Roman asked out of the blue. Some of the other students who were in the hallway briefly looked at him when he asked this. When they realized he was talking to Imogen of all people, they became muddled. None of them though interfered with the conversation they were having.

That random question caused Imogen to stop her walking to glance back at him. "Huh?"

Roman rolled his eyes, halfheartedly. He then steadied his gaze on her as he started walking. He didn't stop walking until he was standing in front of her. "I asked if anyone has ever given you a nickname."

 _You mean other than freak, witch bitch, and fugly prude?_ Imogen quickly disregarded those hurtful thoughts and shook her head. However, his question still left her quite puzzled. She looked at Roman in bemusement, trying her hardest to not let his proximity get to her. "Uh, no."

"Good." Roman replied licking his bottom lip, pleased. "I think I'm gonna call you Immy from now on."

 _Was he being serious?_ Imogen immediately made a face of annoyance at that ridiculous nickname. "Please don't."

Roman eyes gleamed liking her reaction. "Nah, I think I most definitely will." He gave her a flirtatious wink. "I'll see you in class... _Immy_." His gaze lingered on her before he started walking away in the opposite direction.

Imogen closed her eyes and leaned her head up against the nearest locker.

 _God damn you, Roman Godfrey._

* * *

Imogen stared at her lunch, uninterested as per usual. She never really liked the kind of food the school cafeteria served...if one could even call it food. She wished she just brought her lunch today. But alas she didn't. With a frown she pushed the lunch tray away from her.

The raven haired girl was currently sitting in the back of the school where a few lunch tables were located. Imogen normally didn't eat lunch out here. However she was in desperate need of fresh air and to feel the warm sun on her. Maybe it was because of her period, but the extra need to be out in nature had won. She would have worried about the others picking on her, but luck had been on her side today. Well for now at least. She was somewhat ridiculed when she walked the hallways and during English, but that was about it. Strangely enough in English the teasing had stopped not when the teacher came, but when Roman did.

Imogen didn't think much of that because she figured the students were just affected by Roman's presence. Which was something Imogen understood for herself. Roman can be quite intimidating when he wanted to be.

 _Speaking of Roman..._

During English class, Imogen had been thankful he hadn't called her by that ridiculous nickname he had come up with. Especially not in front of Peter. Although she was pretty sure in Chemistry class, Roman had said it under his breath. However, when she turned to scowl at him all he offered her was shrugged shoulders and an innocent smile. She was glad when she turned the lab assignment and left the classroom. She didn't need to deal with him for the remaining of the day.

Not unless she came up to her, but he hadn't. Thankfully.

There was one Godfrey Imogen did want to talk to...well _wanted_ to anyways.

At the beginning of lunch Imogen had tried to find Letha. It wasn't until she passed a crowd of people (who were rudely staring at her) that she immediately stopped her searching. Imogen felt like a fool for actually trying to find her. The pretty blonde probably didn't even want to talk to her anymore. All these negative thoughts were floating around in her head when someone sat across from her.

Imogen inwardly groaned thinking it was Roman. When she looked up though she was pleasantly surprised to see Peter instead. A smile slowly worked upon her face. "Hey." She greeted her brown shaggy haired friend. They hadn't really talked one on one since the coincidence meet up they had the night before. She was happy he wasn't avoiding her or anything.

"Sup, you enjoying your lunch?" Peter asked gesturing to the untouched lunch tray.

Overjoyed that they were having a conversation, Imogen had no trouble narrowing down her lightheartedness. "Oh, yeah. For sure." She said before letting out a laugh. "It's one of a kind."

Peter let out his own laugh before he sobered. His gaze was earnest on her "So, how you've been?"

Imogen's laughter ceased. She knew why he was asking this question. The raven haired girl figured he would bring it up eventually. Why wouldn't he? She was pretty sure her period fiasco was now heard all over the school. That didn't mean she liked Peter knowing of her embarrassing moment. She, however, wasn't going to lash out on him like she would if it were Roman. She knew Peter hadn't asked this question to tease her. He was asking out of genuine concern. Imogen pulled on the sleeves of dark blue sweater. "Fine, considering..." She lowered her eyes, bashful.

"People are dicks." Peter simply told her. Although he had asked, he didn't want the embarrassment she felt from yesterday resurface again for her. He didn't like seeing her so downhearted.

Imogen nodded her head. "Yeah..." She uttered before lifting her eyes up. Peter's words made her feel slightly better because he was right. People are dicks. Especially _most_ of the youth population residing in Hemlock Grove.

"Don't worry about them." Peter assured his raven haired friend. "Just keep your head up and look like you don't give a shit."

"That's easier said than done." Imogen said lowly. Except after a pause she nodded her head, determined. "But I'll try to."

It got quiet between them, not that she minded. The cordial quietness along with the fresh air and sun on her face, just made things more tranquil for her. However that all came to end thanks to what Peter said next.

"So you and Roman..."

Imogen's body tensed up at the mention of the dark blonde. She fixed her gaze onto Peter, eyes narrowed. "What about me and Roman?" She asked, puzzled. Why was he bringing up Roman? After their night time accidental meet up (and after that strange encounter with the cops), she thought Peter wouldn't even bring up the topic of Roman again. Clearly she had been wrong in assuming that.

Peter shrugged his shoulders, trying his best to act nonchalant. "I've just seen the way he looks at you in class."

Imogen felt her stomach do a twist. She knew Roman's staring was anything but discreet. Having Peter mention it did nothing to lower the heated embarrassment she was now feeling. "We have Chemistry together. I got stuck to work with him on a lab." She said as if that would explain the dark blonde's intense staring...it hadn't.

Peter's interest increased from hearing that. That however didn't answer the question he had asked. "Doesn't really explain the staring." He casually said to her

"Well, maybe he's a staring fanatic." Imogen replied sardonically. She hadn't meant to sound so harsh with Peter, but her emotions were now all over the damn place. She blamed her period for that.

Despite how discordant she sounded, Peter chose to look passed it. "Yeah, maybe." He repeated evenly. "Was there anything else he said to you?"

"Yeah." Imogen truthfully answered him. She let her gaze wander around the lunch area to see if anybody was close by. The coast was clear. She looked back at him and lowered her voice as if she was tell an important secret. "He really wanted to know if you're a werewolf or not."

That didn't really surprise Peter. He let out a scoff. "Persistent little shit, isn't he?" He saw Imogen nod her head and he continued with his questioning. "Anything else?"

"He's also thinks I'm a witch too." Imogen said fidgeting with her fingers (a sign of anxiousness). "Pretty ridiculous, huh?" She added in hopes that Peter would find the whole thing to be funny. The raven haired girl just wanted this conversation to be like the last one they had when he had walked her home and leaned towards the non-serious scale.

That wasn't going to happen this time though. Peter was going to be real with her. His expression was completely earnest. "Maybe you are." He said making Imogen became tense again. The raven haired girl stopped with her fidgeting and she felt her heartbeat go faster at that one comment. She was trying to see if he was messing with her but she couldn't find any facial features that would prove any playful motives. Despite how honest he appeared to be, Imogen was still in denial. "Well maybe _you're_ a werewolf." She lightheartedly retorted back to him.

Her lack of a shocked reaction didn't falter Peter's seriousness. He took a even bigger leap of faith. _Well_ more like a trusting leap. Telling someone his deepest darkest secret was a dumb move, but something within him reassured him that Imogen was reliable person to confide in. His mother and his cousin Destiny would give him shit for what he was about to do, but at the moment he didn't care for the consequences. He no longer fought against the trusting feeling he was having, and he became deadly serious with Imogen. He stared right into her dark eyes. "What if I am?"

 _Werewolf._

That one word kept repeating in Imogen's head. It was crazy to even consider Peter to be an actual _werewolf,_ but no matter how she wanted to keep denying it, she couldn't anymore. He was being honest with her. As this realization was starting to settle down with her, a horrible question came to mind. She looked at Peter with wide frightful eyes. "Did you...did you _kill_ Brooke?" She shakily asked him. It was hard to believe that her friend Peter (the one boy who had been nice to her) had killed Brooke. It just didn't make sense. Why would he kill her? But she had to ask. She needed to know the truth.

Peter was relieved that she had believed him, but his need to reassure her that he wasn't a killer overlapped that relief. He immediately shook his head. "No, that wasn't me. I swear."

Imogen took a deep breath controlling her emotions. If she and Peter had been anywhere else with no high risk of someone randomly popping up, she would have fully freaked out, but since they were on school property Imogen got a pretty good handle of herself. It was because of her forced calm demeanor that she was able to now fully process everything Peter had just said. He was a werewolf...but he wasn't responsible for Brooke's death...someone, or better yet, _something_ else killed her. But who and what? Imogen wanted to ask this question but then her thoughts took a turn. There had to have been a reason why Peter had opened up with her. She looked at him with a sudden steely gaze. "I'm not a witch." She said to him.

"Maybe not but you are _something_." Peter soften his eyes on her for the news he was about to deliver to her. "Imogen, you're not entirely human. You have to know that."

She did...she just didn't want to admit. No matter how much she got teased by her classmates for being a witch she knew she wasn't one...but that didn't mean she couldn't be something else...something supernatural or maybe even an evil supernatural being. She shuddered thinking she could have something evil within her. Maybe that's what made her have those nightmares. Maybe that's why she saw Brooke's death before it happened. She didn't know what she was and she doubted Peter knew either but she foolishly asked anyways. "Any chance you might know what I am then?" She asked feeling her eyes well up with tears. Her need to full out panic was gone and was instead replaced with need to cry.

Peter gave her a sorrowful look. "I have no fuckin' idea."

Imogen let out a shaky aghast sigh as she continued to fight against the tears that wanted to escape.

 _Well, shit._


	10. Chapter 10

**_Disclaimer_ : **_I do not own Hemlock Grove or any of the characters. I only own my OC._

 ** _A/N:_ **_It's been a while since I've last updated this story, hasn't it? ^.^ I'm sorry about that. As I explained in my authors note in my IT story I had been focusing on school and assignments. It was a rather busy semester for me. I had field school and weekly summaries due. I was able to update my other stories because I had everything already in a way planned out. Plus I just couldn't find the energy for this story. Good news! I'm on summer break now so I have way more time to focus on this story and my other ones I haven't been updating. I want to update Gotham's Light next but chances are I'm going to update either Infinite or Blue And Red. The next chapter for Floating On Air still needs to be written and I probably won't be finished writing that chapter until a week from now. Maybe. Anyways, I hope people are still reading this story. I do plan on continuing it as long as I still have people interested in it and thankfully it appears many of you want this story to continue. I also just want to say that you guys are one of the main reasons why I love to write. This chapter is short compared to the last one but the next one will be longer and so will the next one after that considering it will include the Halloween Homecoming dance. Anyways, listen to some David Bowie when reading this chapter! I did when writing it. Which by the way I do not own any music mentioned in this chapter!_ _Anyways, without further ado here's a brand new chapter!_

 _ **P.S.** I'm going to change the rating of this story from T to M because of later on chapters._

* * *

 _"That proves you are unusual," returned the Scarecrow; "and I am convinced that the only people worthy of consideration in this world are the unusual ones. For the common folks are like the leaves of a tree, and live and die unnoticed."_ _― L. Frank Baum_

* * *

 _ **Chapter 10: A not so normal life**_

When Imogen had been younger she used to believe in anything relating to the supernatural. Fairy tales especially. Her father used to be the one to tell them to her. Which was understandable considering that between Imogen's parents her father was the one who held the most imagination. Her mother was more of a realist and didn't like such immature nonsense (that's what she called it). Her father, however, was the complete opposite. He was always more on the jovial and whimsical side of things. A familial trait Imogen now knew he had inherited from his mother Agatha. The older woman no doubted was the one who told him the same tales he had told his daughter. Whether or not this was true, Imogen still felt the most closest to him than with her mother.

Her father used to speak in such a energized way when he told these tales _―_ hence why she always liked listening to whatever he had to say. The stories (tales) he told were very interesting. Whether it was about a princess and a prince, or one about some mythological creature. Imogen liked all of them. And no matter how stupid they may have sounded to others (her mother especially thought so), Imogen at that young age had a strange fascination and believed in them.

Sadly Imogen's belief for the supernatural changed as she got older.

Her mother's constant lecturing on how her father's stories were asinine finally got to her. The raven haired girl realized that her father's tales were in fact just tales. They were fiction, meaning she shouldn't take them seriously. No matter how much Imogen wanted to believe fairies, mermaids (mermaids were her favorite), dragons, and etc were real she just couldn't. Imogen needed to live in the real world...like her mother had told her. She figured overall that listening to her mother would be the best thing to do...so she did. Imogen though continued to like anything supernatural based...movies, books, TV shows but she no longer believed in them. She grew out of that childlike wonder.

Now what Imogen didn't know was that there was a bigger reason as to why her mother wanted her father to stop telling her those tales of his. She wanted her daughter to be raised normally, with her have nothing to do with the supernatural. The less intrigue and curiosity Imogen had for supernatural the better it was for her. She did not want the dreaded O'Dwyer gift _―_ or curse is more like it _―_ that was probably thrown upon Imogen to be known by her daughter. A curse that she hoped would never rightfully appear in Imogen's life just like it hadn't appeared in her husband's. Imogen's father was lucky to be spared from such burden...and she hoped Imogen would be too.

Unfortunately, Imogen hadn't been as lucky as her father. At the end of the day Imogen's mother worst nightmare ended up coming true. That car accident they had been in was the trigger for everything that was now occurring within Imogen. And that misfortune of having such a curse be put on her was something Imogen was going to figure out soon.

It's been a few days now since that eventful day during lunch. When Peter opened up a new world to her. Well, technically not a new world since it was a world Imogen had closed the door on years ago. The supernatural world. Despite everything appearing normal on the outside it wasn't really. It didn't show on the outside of things but everything was surely different now. At least for Imogen it was. Her skepticism from before was now going away bit by bit.

It still shocked her greatly by what she had found out about Peter. Her _friend_ Peter. The boy who had been kind enough to befriend and trust her with a serious secret. A secret that was about how he was apparently a werewolf. She still had yet to see any visible proof about him being that creature, but even without actual proof she found herself without a doubt believing him. In fact, Imogen found herself believing him the same way she had believed her dad when she heard him share those tales of his with her. She just had a gut feeling that Peter wasn't lying.

Aside from finding out that her one and only friend was a werewolf, there was also the fact that she was something else. As Peter had said to her, she wasn't entirely human. As if that hadn't freaked her out there was also the knowledge that she had no idea _what_ she was. Within those days that have passed, Imogen found herself on more than one occasion actually contemplating talking to her grandmother about this. Maybe she would be able to help in some way. However, her shyness and paranoia got the better of her. A little voice inside her kept saying her grandmother would never believe her and think she was a nutcase...and maybe she was...but she didn't want to be called such a thing by her grandmother. Imogen already had enough taunts from her classmates and the rest of the town folk. No...she decided she needed to figure what she was on her own.

Well...it wasn't like she was completely alone. Imogen had Peter she could talk to. He made it perfectly clear that she could rely on him. Except there really wasn't much the brown shaggy haired boy could say in order to sooth her worry about what she was since he was completely clueless as well. He, however, knew for certain that they could rule out her being a witch. He did explain to her that his cousin Destiny was a witch, and that Imogen didn't exhibit any signs or even auras of being one. So that was a start.

Although in a way Imogen wished she was a witch instead of not knowing what she. Despite the endless bullying she received over it since arriving to Hemlock Grove, not knowing what she was caused her even more emotional pain. The raven haired girl now had an obsessed need to find answers...and she was going to find them alright.

Which is why she was doing research at the moment. It was lunch time but Imogen's usual hunger during this time was not present. The seventeen year old had meant to do this sooner but she hadn't gotten the nerve to even type out a single letter on the school's keyboard. That was before her obsessed need took over and now she could no longer stay back and not seek the truth.

There was still a sinking feeling in her stomach when she sat down but that did nothing to lessen her determination. Once making her self comfortable the first thing Imogen typed out on the school computer using the keyboard was: _What does it mean when you dream about someone dying?_

That right away got her lots of results.

The fist few were websites that showed up didn't catch her interest or didn't help at all. It wasn't until she scrolled down that her attention was caught. Narrowing her dark eyes she clicked on the link and it right away sent her to a website about psychic abilities. The title almost made her scoff. Psychic abilities? Yeah right... but she stopped herself from doing so. No matter how silly it sounded she couldn't rule out any possibilities. Any bemusement she felt all went away as soon as she read what was posted on the front page of that website.

 _There are those that believe dreaming about someone's death is a bad omen. Usually meaning that the person whom you've dreamed of dying is going to die in real life sometime soon. However this is just a theory and not based on logic and should not be entertained. It is important to remember that dreams are usually based on something that people have experienced recently, whether that experience is good or bad._

Imogen stared at the computer screen blinking every so often, taking everything she had just read. That last sentence got to her more than the first three. _Whether that experience is good or bad?_ Imogen didn't experience anything good with the nightmares she has had. However what she saw in her nightmare with Brooke felt real...like she had been there. Why did it feel like that? That real life like feeling of Brooke dying in her nightmare is why she woke up a screaming frantic mess. With that in mind, Imogen found herself typing out the next thing she wanted to know.

Which was: _What does it mean when you scream during a nightmare?_

After Imogen finished typing and pressing the search button, she without even putting much thought just clicked on the first result she saw. With studious eyes she then began to read what was now displayed on screen.

 _To scream while having a nightmare could mean lots of things. The first being that your screaming symbolizes anger and fear. You are expressing some powerful emotion which you have kept pent up inside. It could also mean you are suffering from night terrors. Though night terrors can be alarming for those who witness them, they're not usually cause for concern or a sign of a deeper medical issue._

Imogen let out a sigh. Great...so she could be having night terrors. That still didn't explain this _knowing_ feeling she would get at times. She figured that definitely had something to do with what she _supposedly_ was. With goosebumps now appearing on her sweater covered arms she hurriedly typed out: _What are some supernatural creatures that see death before it happens?_

The very first thing that popped up at the top of the search results was some strange looking word.

 _Banshee_.

Imogen frowned getting an unknown feeling sink into her stomach as she read that word inside her head over and over again. She didn't really know what to fully expect when typing out this specific question but this last result certainly had her going through multiple muddled loops. The seventeen year old had never heard of that word before...so why did it sound so familiar to her? She was about to click on the link for further reading when a distinct male voice entered her ears.

"Doing some light research."

Hearing that familiar voice made Imogen jump in her seat. She quickly exited out the web browser she was on, completely forgetting about her research momentarily. She made sure to compose her surprised state and plastered on glare when she turned around in her seat. She normally wouldn't put on such an annoyed expression given her shy nature, but she knew exactly who was behind her...and it wasn't someone she was particularly fond of.

"What do you want?" Imogen asked when she saw Roman Godfrey standing behind her. Despite how firm she was projecting her voice, inside she was panicking a bit. She hoped that he hadn't really seen what exactly she had been researching. It would have been embarrassing if she had to come up with some rational reason as to why she was looking this sort of stuff up. Although even if he did see it she really had no obligation to talk to him about it. The last thing Imogen wanted to do right now was to engage in a full conversation with Roman of all people about her sudden need to know her supernatural self. He would have thought she losing her damn mind.

Roman's intense staring on her didn't waver. Neither did the small impish grin he had on. Clearly his unexpected interruption had caused the raven haired girl great annoyance. Which didn't bother him in the slightest. He hadn't thoroughly seen what she had been looking up on the computer but whatever it had been greatly interested her because she had been so focused that she hadn't heard him come her way. And there was a reason why he had been trying to find the mousy looking girl. Not that finding her was a troublesome task. There wasn't that many places Imogen could be during school time. If she hadn't been hiding in one of her scheduled classrooms or out in the back that meant she was in the library.

"You've been avoiding me." Roman finally said to her. The way he spoke sounded cool and nonchalant. However, deep down Roman was curious to hear her response. For him it did feel like the O'Dwyer girl had been avoiding him these last few days, and he felt that Peter had something to do with it.

Roman had been noticing how Imogen and the Rumancek boy had been growing closer with each other based on the amount of time he had seen the teens together during their school breaks. At first it didn't really bother Roman...but now he wasn't so sure. It just felt like he was being left out from something...dare he say important. Plus there was also the truth that Roman wanted the alone time Peter was getting with Imogen for himself.

What he said made Imogen's glare fall apart. "No, I haven't." She answered now frowning a little. In her mind she hadn't been avoiding the Godfrey boy. It was kind of hard to do so when she shared classes with him. Sure she kept their conversations in class short but she hadn't been avoiding him as he had told her.

Roman narrowed his green eyes at her response. This time his grin did falter as he spoke. "Yes, you have."

Imogen let out an exasperated sigh. It appeared that he wasn't about to let this go and she was getting tired of sitting and having to crane her neck up to look at him. She got up from her seat and grabbed her backpack. Even now as she stood to her full height she still had to look up to meet his gaze. Damn him and his height. At least it wasn't uncomfortable as when she had been sitting down. "What are you talking about?" She found herself asking him. "I've been going to class." And she had been doing so. Imogen hadn't skipped class again like she had done been recently. She couldn't afford to keep missing class. Not if she wanted to keep her grades up and maintain a good grade point average. The seventeen year old needed to have good grades in order to get a scholarship and go to a good university.

"But you haven't kept in touch with me." Roman dryly elaborated. Despite bringing the point up he did his best to sound nonchalant about the whole ordeal. Hence why he used a bored tone of voice.

"Well, sorry I haven't been dedicating every single second of my life to you." Imogen replied rolling her eyes. It amazed and bewildered her how when talking to Roman her more acerbic side came out. A side she didn't even knew existed until rightfully meeting the Godfrey boy. If it had been anyone else she probably would have been her usual shy and quiet self. Except when speaking to her grandmother or Peter. With them she wasn't shy...but she also wasn't as caustic as she was with Roman. "I apologize for that. I really do." She sarcastically said to him.

The way she spoke in that hard tone of voice got Roman to grin again. The O'Dwyer girl really was easy to mess with. He just loved that. "God." Roman suddenly chortled. "I really did miss these nice conversations between us, Immy." After saying that he waited for the reaction he knew he was going to get for calling her by that nickname. He was mildly disappointed though when she didn't roll her eyes at him or even formed her facial features into a glare.

Imogen had to stop herself from snapping at him for using that ridiculous nickname he had insisted on calling her. That's how he had been addressing her for the last few days. She doubted he was going to stop anytime soon. Even with the obvious dislike she made towards the nickname...he didn't stop. Imogen had a feeling he was waiting for her typical upset reaction right about now. Well if that was the case he was about to be disappointed because that wasn't going to happen right now. Instead she breathed in and out before calming down. "What are you really doing here?" She placidly asked, turning the conversation around. Imogen raised her eyebrows slightly. "Was is just to tell me all that?" She doubted that was the real reason he was in the library. In the amount of time Imogen's been at the high school she's never once seen Roman in the library. Why now of all times?

Roman still felt disappointed that he wasn't able to get an ardent reaction out of her. He wasn't down the dumps for long because he knew another way he could get Imogen to react. Although this way guaranteed a flustered reaction instead of an annoyed one, but he had no problems with that whatsoever. Roman always liked it whenever she got red in the face anyways. Stepping closer towards her, Roman carelessly eyed her up and down. Even with the baggy clothing she had on and her slightly unkempt hair he couldn't help but be lured in by her. There was just something about Imogen O'Dwyer that made Roman Godfrey want to have her more than any of the other girls he had come across with. Looking down into her dark eyes with his green eyes he spoke...ever so lowly. "What if it was?" He asked her.

Imogen gulped feeling the heat rising to her cheeks. His closeness made her take a step back. This action caused her bottom to touch the computer desk. Her stance faltered for a few seconds before she was able to look at Roman's way again. "Well, congratulations you told me. Mission accomplished." After saying this she inwardly reprimanded herself for being easily affected by closeness. Although to be honest her sudden shyness really had to do more with Roman's intense staring and that voice of his. Imogen had been momentarily mesmerized by it. She however knew better. She really needed to get it together. She had to keep telling herself this was Roman Godfrey. He wasn't someone she should be longing over for. Not that she longed over anyone these days...or ever really.

Roman wanted to continue to his flirtatious actions to make her blush even more but he decided to spare her. Mainly because they were in a public setting and he noticed that the librarian had been keeping a close eye on them now. He leaned slightly back to give her more personal space. He watched in amusement as Imogen scurried towards where the free space was at. "You should look for my cousin." Roman finally spoke, telling her the other reason as to why he had been trying to find her. "She's been trying to find you."

Once Imogen found her comfort zone (away from Roman), she processed what he just said. "Letha?" She questioned furrowing her eyebrows. "Why?" Despite Letha being nice to her during her period episode, Imogen didn't think the pretty blonde would want to openly talk to her again.

Roman didn't say anything. He just looked at her as he shrugged his shoulders. The secretive expression he had on did nothing to sooth Imogen from her bemusement.

 _Great._ Imogen sighed. It appeared that she needed to figure out another mystery. This one being as to why Letha was looking for her. "Alright...well, thanks for informing me." Imogen hurriedly said to Roman before she passed him. She felt goosebumps cover her arms again when one of her hands grazed his own momentarily when she walked by.

A smirk appeared onto Roman's face when she felt her hand touch his. He knew it was an accident from her part, but he was still glad the action happened. The raven haired girl didn't glance towards him, she just kept walking. Before she was too far away from him, Roman spoke again wanting to get the last say in their conversation. His voice took a sarcastic tone that matched hers from before.

"Bye, _Immy_."

Imogen paused in her steps when she heard him call her that. She didn't need to turn around to know he had a smirk on that handsome face of his. Shaking her head, Imogen decided to take the high ground again. Getting a hold of herself, she took out her iPod as she continued to walk away. The raven haired girl was in desperate need to listen to some _David Bowie_ right about now. His music always made things better...and Imogen at the moment needed that equanimity. Especially after talking to Roman.

* * *

It surprisingly didn't take long for Imogen to find Letha. The peppy blonde had been waiting by her locker. Which surprised Imogen since she didn't know that Letha was aware of where her locker was located at. Guess she must have asked the office. Or maybe Roman told her. Imogen had a feeling the second option was the right answer to that.

As Imogen approached her locker she took out her earbuds right in the middle of _David Bowie's_ song of _Space Oddity._ She needed to remind herself to listen to the full song again later on in the day.

Letha's face brighten up when she caught sight of the raven haired girl. "Imogen! Hi!" She happily exclaimed. Her blue eyes shined as she spoke.

Imogen couldn't help but return the smile back. The blonde's bubbly energy was slowly making its way onto her now. "Hey, Letha. So, Roman said you wanted to talk to me?" She asked deciding to get the point.

Letha's smile fell a little and a worried look started to settle. She looked her over before asking the question that had been running around her mind. "How have you been?"

Imogen shrugged her shoulders trying to appear strong and unaffected. "I've been okay." That was a huge lie. Except it wasn't like she could tell Letha the truth. The blonde would have probably told her that she needed professional help...or something along the lines of that. Not that Imogen would blame her if she were to tell her any of that. Sometimes she did feel like she could use some professional help. But doesn't everyone think so at some point in their life? Especially during the adolescent age.

Letha's bright smile returned. "I'm glad to hear that." Her voice then turned softer but excitement was still there. "So, listen. We should hang out."

Imogen's face twisted into disbelief. "I'm sorry... _what?"_ Were her ears playing trick on her or did Letha Godfrey really just say that?

Letha laughed at seeing the raven haired girl's surprised reaction. "I said we should hang out. The two of us."

Imogen blinked. "Uh...why?"

"Because I think we'd get along pretty well. Don't you?" Letha asked her. She saw how Imogen's features were taking all sorts of expressions. The main one being puzzlement.

"We haven't really had that many interactions together." Imogen bluntly pointed out.

That did nothing to lessen Letha's want to form a friendship with her. "Okay, well with the ones we've had wouldn't you say we get along fairly well?"

Imogen stammered this time. It looked like Letha was being completely serious about them hanging out together. "I mean, sure, I-I guess."

Letha tilted her head a bit. "What is it?" She asked when she saw the fierce thinking face Imogen had on now.

"It's just that we're total opposites of each other." Imogen bashfully said. Not to mention Letha was a total beauty and she in return was not. Imogen, however, decided not to mention that part out-loud.

Letha saw no faults with what she said. "So, we don't have to be alike in order to be friends."

She had a point there. People didn't necessarily have to be the same in order for a friendship to form. Wait a minute...she said friends. Imogen's face morphed into a vulnerable expression now. "You want to be friends with me?" She thankfully had Peter as a friend and that was great, but to actually have a friend of the same gender as her...well, that would be even better. For Imogen at least. She was never one to have friends who were girls. Not even when she lived back in San Francisco.

Letha nodded her head. "Of course I want to be friends with you." She looked Imogen before another smile made its way onto her face again. "So what do you say? Do you accept my request to be friends?"

Imogen stared at the blonde in awe before she was able to give her a single nod.

"Great!" Letha exclaimed gaining attention from a few of the students that were lingering the halls. The blonde, however, paid no attention to them. All of her focus was onto Imogen. "As a proper introduction to our new friendship I know exactly what we should do first. Go shopping for the Homecoming Dance."

"But that's weeks away from now." Imogen protested lightly. For some reason Homecoming this year was going to be on Halloween. Imogen's all time favorite holiday...the second being Christmas.

Letha shrugged her shoulders. "It's never too early for shopping. Besides since it's on Halloween it's themed this year. We get to wear costumes!"

Imogen bit the inside of her right cheek softly. A tick of hers she has been doing since she was a young girl. She wanted to hang out with Letha now that she told her she wanted to be her friend. But to go to a dance at school? It wasn't like she hated dances. Imogen would go to them every now and then back when she lived in San Francisco. In fact the last one Imogen had gone to was an eighties themed dance...and it was fun. Imogen however doubted that she would have fun at the dance here at Hemlock Grove. Not when she knew the majority of the students at the school hated her. "I don't know." She said lowering her eyes.

"Do you already have plans?" Letha asked, curious. When Imogen kept quiet she softly added, "What are you doing to do then? Watch horror movies all night."

That got Imogen to lift up her gaze. "Well...yeah. I do that basically every year now." Which was true. Usually Imogen stayed in for Halloween. She hadn't gone trick-or-treating since she was thirteen and still lived in San Francisco. And ironically enough the last time Imogen dressed up she had gone as a witch. The tradition for her now was to watch the horror movie marathon that ran on the _AMC_ channel. Imogen would watch whatever movie was playing or even _The Walking Dead_ marathon. Which she had to admit she liked very much. A night in on Halloween watching scary movies sounded heavenly to her. Except given the recent tragic events that have happened, Imogen wasn't really in the mood to watch horror movies. Not anytime soon, anyways. So maybe doing something else would be better. Imogen just wasn't sure going to the dance would be a good replacement.

"Come on..." Letha spoke again, brightly. "Don't you want to get all dolled up and dance? Maybe dance with someone special." She said gently bumping her elbow with Imogen's. When the raven haired girl didn't react to that, Letha sighed. "I'm sure there's somebody in this school you find good looking enough to dance with."

Imogen pursed her lips, thoughtful. "Aesthetically overall I do think people are good looking, but for the most part of my seventeen years of living I haven't become attached to someone romantically or even physically." She simply informed Letha, not at all embarrassed about her lack of romantic or sexual experience. "So no...there's no one in specific I would want to dance with." She added the last sentence rather rapidly when she saw the bewildered look Letha now had.

Letha found her wording to be quite bemusing. She hardly ever heard someone speak the way Imogen did. Well, actually she did. In a way Imogen reminded Letha of the character _Spencer Reid_ from the show _Criminal Minds._ They both just always had something interesting to say. It was strangely refreshing to actually know someone like that in real life. Sure the raven haired girl was different, but it was the good type of different. "Well, there's a first time for everything, right?" Letha replied once recovering from her bemusement.

Imogen shrugged her shoulders. "I suppose." Though she really doubted she was ever going to find someone who'd she actually want to engage in romantic and intimate activities. Especially not since she was very self-conscious of her scars. Imogen assumed the day she had sex with someone was the day the earth was going to explode.

"Is that a yes then?" Letha asked hoping Imogen would agree to go already.

Imogen sighed. "I wouldn't even know what to wear..." She tried to excuse herself but even to her it sounded pretty lame.

"Well, like I said it's Halloween themed." Letha explained again. "So buy a costume. Simple as that. There this pretty cool costume shop in town. I'm sure we can both find something that we'll like there."

No...not so simple as that. Not when one has scars all over their arms, shoulders, and backside. That was the challenge when it came to dressing up. Not that Imogen ever dressed up now a days. It was this reason that made Imogen refuse Letha's offer to go. Her response got stuck in her throat when she saw the way Letha was now looking at her.

Letha was giving her a pleading expression. " _Please_." Her blue eyes were wide and filled with soft emotions. Her bottom lip was trembling just slightly.

Damn...she was really good at that. A few more seconds passed before Imogen finally caved. She huffed _._ "I mean, if you'll help me pick something out...then sure, I'll go." She figured there must be a costume of some sorts at the shop that would hide her scars.

"Great! We can go shopping sometime this week. I'll let you know when. " Letha smiled, overjoyed. "I'll go to tell Roman the good news." She announced with a spring in her steps.

That made alarm bells go off in Imogen's head. " _Roman_?" She asked. Her voice wavering not only from sudden surprise but from annoyance that was now starting to consume her.

Letha was not at all aware of either of those emotions Imogen was feeling. She just smiled, pleased. "Yeah, he's our ride." She informed her and then started to walk down the school hallway.

Imogen felt her stomach turn as she watched Letha's retreating form. Roman was going to drive them? The O'Dwyer girl's fear of being in a car was momentarily forgotten. No, all Imogen could think about was how she was about to spend more time with Roman. Granted Letha was going to be there with them but that still wasn't something Imogen was looking forward to.

She let out a huff running a hand through her tangled locks. Great...just when she had been doing well in blocking Roman out of her life this happens to her.

Imogen concluded that the universe really liked messing with her.


	11. Chapter 11

**_Disclaimer_** **:** _I do not own Hemlock Grove or any of the characters. I only own my OC._

 ** _A/N:_** _I am sorry for lagging on this story. I was focusing on school, and then I started really getting into my new AHS story, and I also was working on my latest chapter for Floating On Air. It wasn't until I saw the movie Thoroughbreds that I got motivation to continue writing this story. I saw Anya Taylor-Joy in it and her performace made me realize just how much I missed writing Imogen's character. Anyways...here's a new chapter! It's not as long as I wanted it to be, but at least it's something._

 _Are you guys excited for the movie Glass? I'm planning on watching it opening night with my niece and nephew. We usually go to this nice theater in downtown L.A. whenever we go see a movie together. We did that with the new Halloween move in October and we loved it. But Glass is a movie I have longed seeing ever since the release of Split. Gah, I love that movie and Unbreakable. The acting and soundtrack are amazing in those two. My fave score from Unbreakable is The Orange Man. The score playing during that specific scene in the movie always gives me goosebumps. I'm excited to hear the soundtrack for Glass. I am also beyond happy Anya Taylor-Joy is going to reprise her role as Casey Cooke. She's a survivor and fighter. Can't wait to see what her character is going to do in this new movie._

 _I know I haven't said Imogen's parents names yet, and there's a reason for that. I'm saving it for a special, rather emotional moment she's going to share with Roman once they get closer with one another. However, if you want a visual representation of her parents I imagine the actress Bridget Catherine Regan as the faceclaim for her mother, and Ethan Hawke as the faceclaim for her father._

 _Also, I don't own the music or artists mentioned in this chapter! :)_

 ** _P.S._** _I'll fix any errors that are in this chapter later! Sorry in advance!_

* * *

 _"Being different is a revolving door in your life where secure people enter and insecure exit."_ _― Shannon L. Alder_

* * *

 _ **Chapter 11: The joys of shopping**_

Imogen hated shopping.

Alright, perhaps the word _hate_ was too much of a strong word to describe how she felt. The raven haired girl though certainly disliked shopping. Her dislike hadn't been something that always existed. The ill content feelings for that specific activity only grew after the car accident she had suffered through. The same car accident that killed her parents, and left her with permanent scars all over her arms, shoulders, and backside.

It would be better said that she hated to look at herself now. For it was a reminder of what she lost and what her body unfortunately got stuck with.

Imogen no longer took joy in trying on outfits, and she hated looking at herself in the mirror. Her own reflection now only caused her to feel self disgust and heartache. That's why she always tried her hardest to not look herself in the mirror anymore, especially when changing. Her reflection would just cause her to go down a spiral of unanswered questions.

Why did she survive the car crash? Why not her parents? Why did the scars on her face go away but not the other ones that were on her body? There were other questions that would pop into her head. Although it was the first two questions that really got to her the most, causing her to feel guilt. She really should have been more grateful in being alive but she just couldn't. Even now as time had passed, Imogen still had that lingering thought that passing away with her parents would have been better.

The scars on her body certainly made her feel that way.

Imogen already knew beforehand that the shopping trip with Letha was probably not going to end well in regards to her emotions. The raven haired girl really should have declined Letha's invitation from the start...but her new blonde friend's happiness had stopped her from doing so. Imogen blamed Letha's pretty soft features because they had caused her to cave in so easily. It was those same soft features that caused Imogen to awkwardly accept the sudden reminder that they were going today of all days to the costume shop after school. Imogen thought they would go later on in the week as Letha had told her, but apparently there had been a change in plans and today was the day for them to go.

Except not only was Imogen dreading going shopping, but she was also dreading being around Roman. Or to be more exact, she was dreading being in the same car as the Godfrey boy. Fortunately, Imogen was able to get out of the whole car ride situation. The seventeen year old managed to tell Letha that she needed to go home to get some money for their little shopping trip.

Of course, Letha being the kind person that she was offered to have Roman drive her home. Imogen though was never going to let that happen. In response to that offer, she hurriedly told Letha that wasn't necessary and then bolted to where her bike was. Before doing so, she sheepishly told Letha she would met her and (unfortunately) Roman at the costume shop. Imogen knew it wouldn't be that difficult to find the costume shop. Hemlock Grove was only so big after all.

Thankfully, Imogen hadn't run into Roman when leaving the school. She did cross paths with Peter but she kept their interactions short. Imogen didn't want to tell Peter about her plans with Letha...mainly because it annoyingly involved Roman. However, Imogen knew that she'd eventually had to tell him. After all, Imogen was about to be in public with not only one Godfrey...but with two.

And as much as she didn't want to tell Peter about the plans she made with them, Imogen was even more nervous about what her grandmother would say. Agatha had made it abundantly clear how she didn't want her around the Godfreys...specifically Roman. Maybe luck would be on her side and her grandmother wouldn't find out on her own. The only reason Agatha had found out about her time spent with Roman at the coffee shop was because she straight out told her. Maybe if Imogen hadn't said anything, Agatha would have never found out. Except as much as Imogen to believe that, she just couldn't. Agatha would have known regardless. Someone would have told her. Even if the townsfolk disliked Agatha, they probably would have told Imogen's association with Roman because they wanted to know why someone like Roman Godfrey would be spending time with Imogen O'Dwyer.

It was a rude and blunt thing to thank, but Imogen knew it was entirely possible. Most of the Hemlock Grove's townsfolk disliked her as much as her grandmother. Imogen also had a feeling luck wouldn't grant her such a thing anyways. And as of lately luck hadn't really been on her side. Imogen supposed she could figure some sort of excuse. Despite not liking lying to her grandmother, she knew telling her the truth would upset her...and the last thing Imogen wanted to do was upset her grandmother.

That was the reason why Imogen made sure not to pass her grandmother's workplace on the way into town. She took a different way into town, and although she had a little bit of difficulty finding the shop, at the last minute of giving up she finally found it. Though she wasn't exactly happy with how she found the costume shop. She instantly felt her mood sour the second she caught sight of Roman outside of said building. The Godfrey boy was outside the costume shop, leaning against one of the entrance's doors, looking as smug as ever. He of course was smoking a cigarette. Imogen she saw his murky green eyes gleam when her bike came to a stop right next to his tall form.

"Hello, Immy."

Imogen huffed as she got off of her bike. She said nothing to him as leaned her bike to the side of the front entrance of the costume shop. The raven haired girl was doing her best not to react to that ridiculous nickname. Despite her efforts on keeping her composure, she felt her left cheek twitch from annoyance. " _Roman_." She said once engaging in direct eye contact with him. She was still trying her best to not sound irritated. Except as much as she wanted to deny it, Imogen knew she was doing a horrible job at hiding her irked feelings.

Roman took another drag from his cigarette before he made a wounded like expression. Using his free hand he moved it to place it over his heart. "What? That's all I get as a greeting?"

Imogen wasn't falling for his _'you hurt my feelings'_ act. She gave him a forced placid stare. "What would you have liked me to say? Howdy-do?" She wisecracked.

Roman dropped his free hand and then let out a low chuckle. "Nah..." He grinned, thoroughly pleased by how she was acting. "But I can't lie and say that wouldn't have been amusing to hear from the gecko."

"Where's Letha?" Imogen asked, finally getting to the point with why she was there. If Letha wasn't there yet then there was no way she was going to stand next to Roman and wait for her. Imogen though felt immediate relief when Roman gestured into the costume shop.

"She's inside. I told her I'd wait until you arrived."

Imogen gave him a single nod. She was glad his answer was direct and not a facetious one. The seventeen year old didn't want to deal with his nonsense more than she already had. She was about to pass him to enter the costume shop but what Roman said next halted her movements.

"You know, I could have given you a ride home for you to get your money."

Imogen shrugged her shoulders. "I already had my bike." She said trying to sound resolute. That of course proved to be a challenge yet again with the way he was looking at her.

Roman stared right into her dark eyes with his murky green eyes. His stare was unrelenting and it affected her even more with what he said next. "Well, I'm giving you a ride home."

Imogen right away started to shake her head. "That's not really necessary."

Roman took one last drag from his cigarette before throwing onto the ground and stepping on it. His expression was now stern as he spoke. "I wasn't asking, I was telling." He said in an even tone of voice.

The raven haired girl was about to respond back but before she could the Godfrey boy was already making his way inside the costume shop. Imogen stared at his retreating form, flabbergasted.

 _Well then..._

Imogen frowned, annoyance and dread filling her up again. What Roman just said made her feel goosebumps underneath the baggy grey sweatshirt she was wearing. She realized that he wasn't going to let her off easy when the time came to leave. He really was going to take her home...and Imogen was not looking forward to that. Imogen managed to calm herself down with what she though next. She still had her bike, and she couldn't just leave her bike behind. Maybe...just maybe...she'd be able to worm herself out of that situation.

The stomach twisting feeling she got at the image of Roman driving her home went away the moment Imogen entered the costume shop. Her mood elevated a bit and her ears perked up when she recognized the song that playing aloud. It was the song, _Mary Jane's Last Dance_ by _Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers. _

_Last dance with Mary Jane_  
 _One more time to kill the pain_  
 _I feel summer creepin' in and I'm_  
 _Tired of this town again_

Imogen had to fight herself with wanting to sing along with the lyrics to the song. It was one she was very familiar with. Her father had been a huge _Tom Petty_ fan. She would always sing along to _Tom Petty's_ songs with her father whenever they spent time together. Despite her father loving his songs, Imogen had to admit she enjoyed _Tom Petty's_ music just as much as she enjoyed _David Bowie's_ and _Stevie Nicks'_. However, after the car accident she slowly started to stop listening to _Tom Petty_. The main reason was because it reminded her of the time she would spend with her father. The memories of them together getting along caused her to feel sadness.

The seventeen year old expected to feel that familiar sadness go through her right now. However, Imogen was surprised when she didn't. Yes, there was an ache inside her but it wasn't as strongly as it had been in the past. At the moment, Imogen was handling herself fairly well. The past memories of her and her father listening to music together were playing in her head...and she was finding herself okay with that.

As the song continued to play, Imogen's gaze wandered around the shop. The size of the place was pretty small, but that wasn't much of a surprise to the O'Dwyer girl. Most of the other shops in Hemlock Grove were either really small, or at a decent size. The particular size of the costume shop though didn't take away any of its appeal. Imogen had to admit the inside of the costume shop was rather cozy and definitely interesting. There were all sorts of costumes. The traditional ones of course stood out to Imogen, but there were also a few that she didn't recognize right away.

Imogen let out a low gasp and had almost bumped into Roman from behind when she heard a very familiar voice.

"Imogen! Hey!" Letha exclaimed. The O'Dwyer girl quickly backed away from the Godfrey boy hoping to God he hadn't noticed that she had almost bumped into him. However, that smirk on his face showed her that he had taken notice. Imogen did her best to ignore him as she set her focus onto Letha instead. She managed to release a small smile as she greeted her.

"Hi, Letha."

There was a bright smile on Letha's face as she came to stand next to Imogen and Roman. "I'm glad you're finally here!" She sincerely told her and then happily revealed the dress she had been hiding behind her back to her raven haired friend. "What do you think?" She asked playfully showing the dress to her.

Imogen's gaze fell onto the dress. She had no idea Letha had been hiding it. The raven haired girl carefully studied the dress. It didn't take long for her to come up with an opinion. "It's pretty." Imogen concluded, and that was the truth. Although she wasn't much of a fashion expert (even before the car accident), Imogen had to admit the dress was very pretty. It was a 1920s black flapper dress and even without seeing Letha actually wearing it, Imogen knew her blonde haired friend would do the dress justice. "I think you would look great in it." She genuinely told her.

Letha nodded her head, as if finding that to be the final approval she needed. "Then, I'm gonna go try it on."

Imogen nervously glanced at Roman before looking at Letha again. She just found Letha and now she was going to leave to try on that dress. That just meant she was going to be with Roman...alone...again. She swallowed the lump in her throat. _No, please don't leave me with Roman._

Letha, however, could not sense Imogen's distress. She just smiled and then looked at her cousin. "Roman, keep her company please."

Roman's lips tugged upwards. To others that action might have looked like he was smiling but Imogen knew by now that he wasn't really smiling. No, he was smirking. His gaze flickered onto Imogen and then back onto Letha. "Don't worry dear cousin, I wasn't planning on leaving her."

Letha politely excused herself and all Imogen could do was watch her walk away towards where the changing rooms were at. As soon as Letha was inside, Imogen immediately put space between her and Roman. The raven hared girl walked closer to where the cashier was at up front. Although the cashier looked to be more interested texting on her cellphone than paying attention to her customers, it made Imogen feel less nervous now that she was alone with Roman.

However, her nerves were still there because she could feel Roman's eyes on her. It was exactly like how he would stare at her when in class. She did not like that at all. It made her feel all fidgety and not only that, but it made her cheeks and ears warm up like crazy. She always disliked attention, but that's escalated now with Roman. As Imogen kept looking at the costumes that were on display near the cashier, she felt Roman's presence from behind her. He was _really_ close to her now. Much closer than before. Imogen slowly breathed in and out, preparing herself to tell him to back off. However, when she finally got the courage to turn around and look at him she was verbally hit with a sudden question.

"Why are you always so quiet and withdrawn?"

Well, that was highly unexpected. A puzzled expression began to form on her face. "Huh?"

Despite finding her thrown look to be adorable, Roman kept his stance. "You heard me."

Imogen had no idea what to say at first. Really, she had no clue. What kind of question was that supposed to be? After thinking the question through though, Imogen came to the conclusion that Roman was just asking as a way to get to her. Roman had to have known the answer already. He had been a witness when the other students had made fun of her. It shouldn't come as a surprise as to why she was quiet and withdrawn from just about everyone else. Still, she indulged him. "Because being around people gives me a headache." She simply replied, continuing on with her costume searching.

Roman scoffed. "That's bullshit."

Imogen once again stopped walking. She looked up at him, frowning. "Excuse me?"

Roman halted his movements as well and was now towered over her. "What you just said was stuck up and I know that you're not a stuck up bitch." He retorted, his intent gaze never wavering on her. "Not like most of the population in this shitty town."

Those murky green eyes of his were making her stomach do all sorts of twists. Her cheeks and ears were burning from the heat she was now feeling. Imogen hoped the redness wasn't noticeable. "You barely even know me." She argued.

"Oh, I know enough." Roman cryptically answered her.

Imogen found his response to be muddling. Except due to her highly embarrassed state, she chalked it up as Roman being Roman. He after all witnessed how she had been treated since school started. Imogen, however, inwardly prepared herself with what she said next. "Look, you know why I am the way I am. I get bullied practically everyday. You've seen that. Everyone has seen it. So, do you really have to ask?"

Of course he'd seen it. He'd have to be fuckin' blind not to see how she was treated. However, now that he was getting closer to her the dislike he felt for the unfair treatment she got was really angering him. More than once had he seen those same bastards who bothered Imogen bother Shelley. He hadn't found the right moment, but Roman really wanted to teach those bastards a lesson. And he was going to, he just needed to strike at the right time. But besides getting even for Imogen and his darling sister Shelley, Roman got a feeling that there was more to why the O'Dwyer girl was distant with everyone. Something that just wasn't about the bullying, not entirely anyways. Perhaps that's also the reason why Imogen dressed the way she did. In those awful bagging clothing. "Yeah, but there's more to it." Roman insisted, as his gaze never lost the intensity that was behind his eyes.

Imogen bit the inside of her cheek, softly. "What?"

This was something that Roman noticed. Which was just a confirmation that he was right. He took another step toward her. The redness on her face became more visible which only pleased the Godfrey boy."You know exactly what... _Immy_." He said, emphasizing his nickname for her. "I have a feeling that even before you came to live in this _lovely_ town that you weren't exactly an extrovert. Am I right?"

Imogen had to control her breathing. He was really close to her again. Roman was so close that there really was no point in lying to him. He would be able to tell right away if she was fibbing. _God damn you, Roman Godfrey._ Imogen decided to be real with him. This was probably the most real she was about to be with him...and strangely enough it wasn't bothering her as much as she thought it would. She steadied her composure as she spoke. "Fine...the truth is I'm an introvert who likes authenticity. I can't stand fake people."

Roman this time was pleased by her answer because it was genuine. A smile instead of a smirk appeared on his face. It was the kind of smile he would only ever give to his sister Shelley or even Letha. Only now it was a smile directed to Imogen...and he in no way found that to be arduous. "Now that sounds like the real you."

Imogen was greatly shocked by what she was seeing. Roman Godfrey was smiling...actually smiling. For this brief moment in time he wasn't smirking that usual suggestive smirk of his. He was smiling...and dare she say that it was a nice smile. Perhaps during the past encounters they had, he had smiled, but it was only now that Imogen actually felt like it was genuine. She, however, didn't have time to bask that in because what Roman said next got stuck in a loop inside her head. It kept replaying over and over again she couldn't help but say it aloud.

"The real me." Imogen repeated, lowly. That caused several different emotions to arise in her. Who even was the real her? Because apparently (according to Peter _―_ and she believes it herself now) she wasn't entirely human.

Roman's smile fell when he noticed how Imogen was spacing out. He had heard her say that last sentence, and wondered what the meaning behind it was. He was really curious. He wanted to talk about it but he had a feeling doing that would only ruin whatever progress they had just made. So instead of taking the more serious route, he took the less serious one. He leaned forward and that right away got Imogen out of whatever daze she was in. The Godfrey boy felt satisfaction course through him when he saw her face go red again as he moved closer to her. Once he grabbed the costume he was aiming for he took a step back. He wasn't ashamed to admit that he was enjoying the flushed view that was of Imogen O'Dwyer.

"You should dress as a hippie."

A few seconds of silence passed before Imogen was able to get a handle of herself. She narrowed her dark eyes onto the costume Roman was holding. It was a cheesy, typical, white knee length hippie dress costume. Imogen furrowed her eyebrows. "Why?" She asked him. It wasn't that she was against being a hippie. Except she wouldn't wear that dress for obvious reason. Still, she was more confused as to why Roman wanted her to be that. She would have figured he'd say something totally different.

Roman looked at the dress he was holding and then at Imogen again. He had said this because it was based off of the music he had seen on her iPod playlist. However, for obvious reasons he couldn't tell her that. "I just think you'd be a cute hippie. Not that you're not cute already." Roman said, throwing her a wink. He was no longer smiling. That smirk from before had now returned.

Imogen would never admit this aloud but she was kind of sad to see his smile go away. Now that smirk that made her go red as a tomato was there instead. Although, the redness on her face might have also been because he had called her cute. Not that she found that to be flattering...maybe a little but not enough to get another reaction out of her. Of course what he said next did get another reaction out of her.

"Or you could go as the obvious..." Roman said putting the hippie costume to side and then pointed to a witch hat that was next to it.

Imogen right away scowled at him. " _Haha_."

Roman found her scowl to be completely amusing. The only other thing he liked seeing besides a flushed Imogen was an annoyed Imogen. However, Roman did want to say something to her. She was probably going to take it as him joking around, and he was...but he was also going to mean it. Not that she really needed to know that detail. Roman grew quiet for a moment, and then looked her right into her dark eyes again. "I'm glad you don't think of me as a fake person."

"I never said I didn't think of you that way." Imogen immediately retorted.

Roman's murky green eyes gleamed. "And yet here you are...with _me_." He suavely told her. "Funny how we always end up in these types of scenarios. Almost like fate. Hell, maybe it is fate."

"No, it's not fate." Imogen quickly shut down that idea of his down. "I'm here because of Letha, not you."

Roman laughed, lowly. "Whatever helps you sleep at night, Immy." His laughter faltered as he spoke again. "Speaking of sleep, have you been getting any?"

He sounded so concerned right at that moment, that it threw Imogen off. Was he for real? Was he really interested if she had been getting sleep or not? That was surprising. However, what was even more surprising was that she was actually going to answer him. Except she never got to because Letha chose that moment to come out of the changing room.

"I'm getting this for sure." Letha happily said as she made her way over towards them. The black dress she has tried on was now in her hands, ready to be purchased. The blonde quickly felt her happiness falter a bit when she saw that Imogen was still empty handed. "You still haven't found anything?"

Imogen moved her gaze away from Roman. She looked at her blonde haired friend and shrugged her shoulders. "No...nothing has captured my interest."

"I told her she should dress as a hippie." Roman added from the sidelines. He purposely left out the part of him joking she should go as a witch.

"Yeah, well..." Imogen drawled on as she looked at the hippie costume.

Letha right away saw how unsure and uncomfortable she looked. Her gaze landed onto Roman and an idea came to her head as way to get Imogen to open up more.

"Roman, do you mind just leaving us girls? " Letha sweetly asked him. "Maybe you can head over to the ice cream shop? Save us some seats and we'll meet you there."

If it had been anyone else, Roman would have told them to fuck off. But this was Letha...his cousin. He wasn't about to act that with her. Letha and Shelley were about the only people he actually gave a damn about. "Sure, why not?" Roman said and then started making his way out. He made sure to stare at Imogen one last time before he exited the costume shop.

Imogen felt like she could breathe a little bit better now that he was gone. "Thanks." She muttered.

"It's no problem." Letha answered. "I should have figured it would be easier if it was just us girls to begin with. Anyways, what do you really think of this one?" She said gesturing to the hippie costume.

Imogen sighed."It's nice but...it's a sleeveless dress." She replied, crestfallen. The truth once again was swimming up to the surface. That's why she was so unsure with agreeing to the costume in the first place. Her scars would surely sure if she wore that dress.

"You could always wear a cardigan or jacket over it?" Letha suggested. "In fact, I think I might even a jacket that would go well with it."

"Really?" Imogen asked, feeling relieved and grateful.

Letha nodded her head. "Yeah, and I'll let you borrow it if you buy the dress."

Imogen was about to respond, but another dress caught her attention. The raven haired girl had no idea on how she didn't notice that dress the moment she had entered the store. It was a long red burgundy lace dress, with slightly loose long sleeves. In Imogen's eyes the dress was absolutely beautiful. By the looks of it, it was also the last one of its kind. And her happiness only grew when she saw it was in her size.

Letha was bemused by the sudden distraction but she eventually caught. She looked between Imogen and the burgundy dress, the hippie dress long forgotten now. Her lips went upwards once focusing on Imogen's awed outward form. "Oh, I know that look."

Imogen's turned to look at her, head tilted. "What look?"

"That wide eyed, amazed look you have going on." Letha softly told her. "You love that dress, don't you?"

It wasn't much of a question as it was an observation but the raven haired girl still answered as if it were one. "It is beautiful." Imogen softly said, amazed. She turned her attention onto the dress, once again admiring it.

"I can totally see why. I get that whole _Stevie Nicks_ vibes from just looking it." After saying that Letha's face brightened up from excitement. "Oh my God, Imogen! You should totally go as _Stevie Nicks!"_

Imogen didn't get as excited as Letha had. At least, not right away. She instead pondered what her blonde haired friend said. "You really think I can pull the look off?" _Stevie Nicks_ was an icon. Not to mention, she was one of Imogen's all time favorite artists.

Letha right away nodded her head. "Yeah."

Despite the blonde's reassurance, Imogen still wasn't sure. She let out a sigh. "No, I don't think I should. I wouldn't do the look justice. I'm too ug _―_."

"Don't you dare finish that sentence." Letha swiftly interrupted. "How about I do your hair and makeup for the Homecoming Dance?"

Imogen stared at her in huge disbelief. Did Letha really just offer to do that for her? "You'd do that?"

"Only if you get that dress." Letha smiled.

Imogen found it easy to return the smile. Without wasting another second, Imogen gently grabbed the burgundy dress. She held it against her body and let a happy laugh escape her.

Looks like she was going as _Stevie Nicks_ this year for Halloween.

Strangely enough, as soon as Imogen finished thinking that, the song _Sara_ by _Stevie Nicks_ started to play in the costume shop.


End file.
